ALLAN MCGREGOR cited "sporting integrity" as he delivered a cutting response to the rescheduled winter break.

The SPFL brought the pause in fixtures forward to immediately follow the Boxing Day fixtures meaning matches on December 29 and January 2 have been changed in the calendar.

For Rangers it's a match against Aberdeen and the hotly-anticipated clash at Celtic Park which have been pushed back.

And McGregor was quizzed on the issue in his press conference ahead of the St Mirren match on Boxing Day as to whether clubs pushed for the fixture amendments for their own advantage.

The Rangers No1 said: "Well, we all know sporting integrity is one of the biggest things in Scotland so I’d like to hope not but I don’t see why it didn’t go on the way as planned.

"But if that is the case, oft, sporting integrity, we all know in the last number of years is a massive part of Scottish football."

McGregor then called for Scottish football to learn to live with the virus as he admitted he expects he could be playing in front of empty stands in the months ahead.

"If there’s a new variant in three months, four months, five months which there probably will, are we going to shut up shop again?", he questioned.  "Are we going to keep doing it when there’s a new variant every few months?

"We just need to learn to live with it, we take all the precautions we possibly can. It’s unfortunate that clubs have got players that have got Covid but it’s going to happen. I think you just need to live with that.

"I think the hierarchy want clubs to do well in Europe, they want the national team to do well and qualify, there’s loads of games throughout the season, Covid didn’t go away at the start of the season, it’s still here, it’s still going to be here for a while, why not have five subs as well."

The shifted winter break means there is very little space left for any re-arranging of fixtures in the second half of the season.

And with January and February ringing the chance of possible weather issues, McGregor could see a scramble to fit matches in.

But he issued a blunt reply as he insisted the SPFL knew what was to come and still made the decision to alter the fixture list. 

He added: "They knew that when they made the decision and still made it so it’s on them really."