After losing in Edinburgh on Saturday, the Celtic support was looking for a response last night. And that’s exactly what they got!
Celtic Weather an Early Storm
To their credit, Aberdeen came to Celtic Park last night with the clear intent of having a go. They created chances and tested our defence. Trusty again looked a little shaky at times. There’s work needing done on the training pitch to work out exactly why a player so solid for us in Europe has looked a little fragile in his last couple of domestic games.
A family emergency meant Greg Taylor was excused last night, offering a temporary answer to the ongoing question of who gets a start at left back. Schlupp continues to improve with every game as he adapts to this Celtic side.
Cameron Carter-Vickers delivered another confident performance, showing why he is the best centre-back in the league by some distance. And Alistair Johnston was brilliant once again both in defence and attack.
Daizen’s Pace Proves Vital Once Again
Celtic soon took control though and opened the scoring on the 24th minute, in a manner we’ve come to expect now.
An attempted through ball by Arne Engels was partially cut out by the Aberdeen defence. The ball spun awkwardly into the air, with the goalkeeper seemingly hesitant to come and grab it.
Then, faster than a Rangers Scottish Cup exit, in swooped Daizen Maeda once again, deftly flicking the ball away from the advancing keeper and into the net.
1-0 Celtic.
A Counter-Attacking Masterclass
Aberdeen weren’t for going down without a fight though, and they stepped up their attack after the opening goal. However, this would also prove their undoing just 6 minutes later.
Taking the ball from their own area, Celtic worked the ball out of defence with incredible pace.
In a matter of seconds, Engels once again found himself clear, advancing at an angle into the penalty area. He unselfishly picked out Jota, whose scuffed shot trundled past a beleaguered Ross Doohan and into the Aberdeen net. It was probably the ugliest shot Jota will ever score, but such is his stock with the Celtic support just now, he could tell me he tried it, and I’d probably believe him!
CalMac Gets his Half Century
The game effectively ended as a contest before just before half time when Callum McGregor rifled home a right foot shot. Doohan will probably be annoyed with himself when he watches the highlights back. The Aberdeen keeper did seem to “go down in installments” as my dad would say.
There was a brief moment of concern as VAR checked a possible foul in the build up to the goal, but for once, the officials made the right call.
The goal was a milestone for McGregor. His 50th league goal for Celtic, a tally which moves him above previous captain and club legend Paul McStay.
Another Positive Show from Yang
Yang Hyun-Jun, a second half substitute, added a fourth. His confident finish showed a player who finally seems to be settling into his role at Celtic. It was a far cry from the rash, over-elaborate and nervous approach that characterized much of his indifferent early season form.
He’s not going to displace Jota, Maeda or Kuhn on the wings anytime soon. However, he continues to show why he will be an important part of the Celtic squad in the weeks and months ahead.
Big Kasper Batters the Goalpost
Aberdeen’s industry on the night probably warranted a consolation goal, and it duly came from Shayden Morris in the 90th minute. Though inconsequential to our league position, Kasper Schmeichel was clearly fuming at being beaten at the near post, ending a ten game run without conceding a league goal at Celtic Park.
Spare a thought for that poor goalpost though. The big Dane absolutely blootered it with a kick Bruce Lee would have been proud of!
Daizen at the Double
Any anger amongst the team soon dissipated however, as Daizen Maeda rounded off proceedings in the 92nd minute with Celtic’s 5th goal and his 2nd of the night.
The Japanese forward tapped in an absolutely sublime cross from Alistair Johnston.
Could the Aberdeen defence have done more to cut out the final ball? Probably.
Do I care? Not really.
Celtic now sit just 5 wins away from becoming the first team in Scottish football history to claim 55 legitimate league titles. On current form, that seems an inevitability..