“So we’ll take the responsibility, we’ll take the pressure on our shoulders and let the guys go and play and do their stuff.

“That’s the same message we always try and send the players – is go and enjoy it, play with freedom, go and play your stuff and we’ll take the responsibility, so that’s exactly the same message from the senior boys.”

Another important influence on the playing squad is, of course, the manager. With an unbeaten domestic run stretching past 30 games, Ange Postecoglou has certainly shown an ability to mould and develop a winning team with a particular playing style.

But, McGregor also highlights his ability to give the players that extra boost in the pre-match team talks – something supporters were able to witness with a special video for the season ticket launch on Thursday.

“The manager’s been great,” he said. “He speaks very well and is really calm and knows exactly what he wants from the players.

'That’s the job of the manager, to motivate the players, but we know what he wants us to do from what we do every day in training.'

“The team’s well set up and everyone knows their job and when it comes to match day everyone’s ready to go and understands their role. If he can come in and add a bit to push us over the edge and get us ready for the game then that’s great and that’s what he’s done, he’s been first-class so far.”

Of course, the hype increases when it gets to derby weekend and with the Celts holding a three-point lead at the top of the table, there’s a lot of focus on what a result either way does for the title race.

In McGregor’s eyes, he’s been involved in these run-ins long enough to recognise the title doesn’t just come down to one game but there’s a desire to do everything possible to achieve all three points.

He added: “We have to go and try and produce the goods but it doesn’t matter where we are in the league, if we are ahead or behind.

'The manager has made it clear he wants us to set the standard within the group and come match day that should come out with the good standards we’re setting from training.'

“It’s been a good season so far, we go into the game confident, we’ve been on a good run but these games have a funny way of throwing up something different so you have to be ready for that.

“I think the experience that we’ve gained so far this season should hopefully stand us in good stead come the weekend, and like I said, if we face a different challenge then we’ve got enough to try and overcome that, and that’s what we need to do.

“We have to go there and be men and stand up and be counted, so come the weekend we’ll be giving everything we can to make sure it’s a positive result.”

Captain: Knowledge of experienced players will be vital in the derby