Celtic captain Callum McGregor has torn into Liam Scales in the wake of the Hoops’ humiliating 3–1 Europa League defeat to Ferencváros accusing the defender of carrying a “loser’s mentality” that is poisoning the dressing room.
A Night to Forget at Celtic Park
Celtic’s Europa League campaign began in nightmare fashion on Thursday night as Ferencváros left Glasgow with a fully deserved 3–1 victory. The Hoops were second best all over the park, and the scoreline arguably flattered them.
Liam Scales’ own goal gifted the visitors the lead before Mika Baur levelled just before the break. But any hope of a turnaround was shattered in first-half stoppage time when Kristoffer Zachariassen restored Ferencváros’ advantage and former Celtic winger Daniel Arzani twisted the knife with a stunning strike early in the second half.
It was a performance devoid of fight, quality and belief. The defence looked rattled every time Ferencváros came forward, the midfield was overrun, and the forward line offered next to nothing. Celtic Park, so often a fortress on European nights, fell almost silent long before the final whistle. Boos rang out at full time, and the players were left in no doubt about how the support felt.
And McGregor had seen enough.
McGregor Lets Rip at Scales
Speaking to TNT Sports after the final whistle, a visibly furious McGregor did not hold back and this time, he named names.
“There’s a mentality issue in that dressing room and it’s not going to change until certain people change,” McGregor said. “I look around and I see boys who are accepting defeat before the game is even done. Liam Scales is one of them. That’s a loser’s mentality. You cannot wear this shirt with that attitude.”
The captain continued: “It’s a little bit broken, a little bit nervy but some of it isn’t nerves. Some of it is just not being good enough in the head. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you’ve got a loser’s mentality, you’ll win nothing here. And Liam knows exactly what I’m talking about.”
McGregor was then asked whether he had spoken to Scales directly. His answer was blunt.
“I’ve spoken to him. He knows how I feel. I’m not going to stand here and pretend everything is fine when it isn’t. This club demands standards, and those standards start with the people in that dressing room. If you can’t handle that, you shouldn’t be here.”
“We Have to Fight Our Way Through This”
McGregor insisted the only path forward was unity and hard work but made clear that Scales was not pulling his weight.
“The only way through it is hard work. Staying together. Putting one foot in front of another,” he said. “But staying together means everyone has to be all in. And right now, Liam isn’t.”
“It’s a tough period. You can see how quickly it comes down on top of you. It’s a relatively new group, so we have to learn. You don’t get much leeway at this club. The ultimate test at the weekend is that we have to win the game.”
McGregor was not alone in his criticism. Former Celtic stars Stiliyan Petrov and Neil Lennon were scathing in their own post-match analysis on TNT Sports.
“When did Celtic start playing with fear?” asked Petrov. “This is Celtic Park. Teams should be afraid coming here, not the other way around. But tonight, the players in green and white looked like the ones who were scared.”
Lennon pointed to a glaring lack of confidence and players hiding when it mattered most. “There’s a lack of leadership out there, a lack of responsibility,” he said. “When things go against you, you need characters to step up. Too many of them went missing tonight.”
Pressure Mounts on O’Neill
The defeat leaves Celtic with back-to-back losses following their 3–0 League Cup humbling at the hands of Rangers, and the heat is well and truly on manager Martin O’Neill ahead of Sunday’s Old Firm rematch.
O’Neill himself admitted it was a “European lesson” and described the result as “psychologically quite damning.” He refused to be drawn on McGregor’s comments about Scales, saying only that he would “deal with everything internally.”
But the most damning words of all came from his captain and they will echo around Parkhead for days to come. With Rangers lying in wait on Sunday, Celtic’s problems now extend far beyond the tactics board. The captain has questioned the mentality of his own teammate, and the fall-out is only just beginning.
