ANGE POSTECOGLOU will look to reward Callum McGregor with an extended contract, saying the new Celtic captain is a pivotal figure in his future plans for the club.

McGregor signed a five-year deal with Celtic back in 2019, but Postecoglou wants to extend his stay and renew his terms as he turns his attention from new signings to the existing members of his squad.

“We’ll start addressing those sorts of things now,” Postecoglou said. “We’ve got through the window and not really worked on anything else.

“We’ll work on the players whose contracts are current and see what we need to do there. I’ve no doubt Cal’s going to be an important, pivotal figure in this football club for the next few years.

“The club will respect his position. We’ll start working on the structure off the field in terms of our staffing and how we do things, which is good. After a busy period we can start working on those things now.

“I want to build something that’s going to be sustainable success. It’s going to take a little time but we’re chipping away at it.”

Meanwhile, Postecoglou is confident that new striker Giorgos Giakoumakis will be ready to play a part in tomorrow’s game at Livingston after working on his fitness at Lennoxtown.

“I hope so,” he said. “I get it that people want to see new players but it’s going to be a long season and he’s going to be an important player for us.

“He had a disrupted pre-season – it’s a bit like James McCarthy. I’ve been really keen to get him on the pitch and now it looks like he’s ready to go, which will be great. It’ll be the same with Giorgos. “With Kyogo (Furuhashi) going down it leaves us a bit light because we’ve just got Albi (Ajeti). If he’s not involved on Sunday he’ll definitely be involved on Thursday.”