Callum McGregor has warned that Celtic could face more damaging results if they do not significantly improve following their Old Firm defeat to Rangers. The Celtic captain expressed that the team lacked fight and desire after conceding the opening goal in their Premier Sports Cup quarter-final loss.

Celtic were defeated 3-0 at Ibrox on Sunday afternoon. This follows their recent Champions League exit against LASK, where they surrendered a four-goal lead. McGregor admitted that the team displayed a lack of fight after falling behind to Rangers.

"You can see it, 100 percent," McGregor said when asked if a performance and result like this had been coming. "You see the team and how it functions and how it performs and how it behaves. It’s just been too bitty."

McGregor believes more difficult matches lie ahead unless he and his teammates improve their performance. "So we have to find a way to bring it back and bridge that gap and start to bring it together. Because if we don’t, then you’ll have more days like this."

He added, "We were poor in pretty much every area of the game. Once we went behind, we never looked like we were recovering really to be honest. We never really looked like getting back in it."

After Rangers midfielder Dan Neil scored their third goal, McGregor was seen urging his teammates to prevent further concessions. The skipper acknowledged that the focus shifted to damage limitation against a dominant Rangers side.

McGregor also emphasized the need for new signings to adapt quickly to the demands of playing for Celtic. "I think the difference between the two sides was you’ve seen a team — and then you’ve seen a team of individuals as well," he observed. "Rangers were a team and you could see that. We looked like a team of individuals that wanted to do our own thing and play when we got the ball. Not necessarily run when you don’t have the ball."

He continued, "That’s the one thing you can’t do when you come here is just don’t run. You can’t defend with six players, it’s impossible. We’re trying to get the message to everyone that we have to be a team."

Reflecting on the scoreline, McGregor stated, "You don’t want fours and fives for sure. As soon as the third goal went in, then I’m saying to Cam (Carter-Vickers) and Scalesy (Liam Scales): “Look, no more goals, we have to just tighten this up”."

McGregor stressed that the team must respond quickly, with upcoming matches against Ferencvaros and in the league. "There’s some new guys in and we’re trying to get them bedded in, trying to get them to understand the system, how we want the Celtic team to look. There’s been shades of it this season but not enough. So, eventually, the penny has to drop. We have to get there. Because you can’t just turn it on and off, it’s impossible."

He concluded, "Like I said, it’s two big games that we’ve lost. And you probably won’t get many more before the pressure really ramps up. We have to be honest about that and not shy away from it. We have to fix it."