GLASGOW DERBY DOUBLE IS THE REWARD FOR CELTIC LATE SHOW
- By LIAM McBRIDE
- 2 hours ago
- 5 min read
Celtic left it late to avoid an embarrassing Cup exit against Dundee. It was a game in which, like most of the season, the narrative was driven by off-the-pitch circumstances, as many stayed away on the back of a call to boycott by the Celtic Fans Collective.
Two Glasgow Derby Showdowns in Ten Days After Dundee Struggle
Nevertheless, Celtic nearly took the lead early on, after a nice interchange between Reo Hatate, Tomas Cvancara and Paulo Bernardo set Yang running forward on the left-hand side. With two to pick from in the middle, his first time cross just eluded Joel Mvuka. Just minutes after, Hatate found himself in a promising position on the left and cut inside to produce a curling effort on target.
Although the visitors grew in confidence and came inches from taking the lead at a corner. After a scrappy corner, Luke Graham had a pop. His effort was going wide, but it just passed Ryan Astley’s head. Had the 24-year-old made contact, he would have certainly found the back of the net.
Soon after, the holders should have had a penalty. Hatate slipped in Cvancara with a nicely weighted pass, although with his back to the goal, Luke Graham pushed the striker. The SFA said afterwards, “In the 38th minute, a free kick is correctly awarded outside the penalty area because the pushing began outside and continued inside.
However, it can only be punished if it is holding that continues inside. Pushing can only be punished at the initial point of contact." If you rewatch the incident, the moment of force comes inside the box. Before that, Graham just places his hands on Cvancara.
Dundee regrouped at the interval. The second half began with a wonderful strike from Ethan Hamilton. Celtic huffed and puffed after, but weren’t able to create a range of clear-cut chances. Yang came close from a Kieran Tierney cross, while the fullback stung the palms of Jon Macracken.
Soon after, he was in the right place at the right time to make a goalline clearance. Yet his evening was cut short after being kicked in the face by Cameron Congreve. While the penalty decision was a little more contentious, Ryan Lee was undeniably in the wrong here for only dishing out a yellow card.
In the dying seconds, a flourishing Sebastien Tounetki found the ball on the left-hand side and dribbled past Brad Halliday. His pass across the face of goal found new signing Junior Adamu, who flicked with such composure to level the game and force extra time.
A near-empty Celtic Park was rejuvenated and after over ninety minutes without a goal, the Bhoys doubled their lead just two minutes into the second period with another great piece of play from Sebastien Tounetki. The reward for this laborious win is a Glasgow Derby trip to Ibrox in the last 8.
Celtic Manager Martin O’Neill said afterwards:
“I thought that Dundee played really really well but we found a way to win the game. First of all, we found some sort of resilience in the last minute of added time and we get the goal. I am genuinely really really proud of the team in the manner that they just kept going. It didn’t look like it was going to be our evening at all and found a way first of all to save the game and secondly to win it.”
Player Ratings
Viljami Sinisalo(6) He had very little to do and could not be faulted for the Ethan Hamilton strike; it was simply a world-class finish.
Julian Araujo(6.5) His one-on-one defending was really impressive in the first half. It’s an area of the game in which he is so much better than Anthony Ralston and Colby Donovan. He never got forward as much without Yang in front of him.
Auston Trust(6) A quiet game for the American.
Liam Scales(5.5) The Irishman was slack at times in possession, particularly in the second half, when he lost the ball in dangerous areas on occasion.
Kieran Tierney(7.5) At 1-0 down, he was one of Celtic’s main creative forces. Although his crossing was inconsistent, he frequently got to the byline and also came close to scoring. Not to mention, an invaluable block at 1-0.
Callum McGregor(6) In the moments when Celtic are in need of a goal, you would just like to see him step up and take more responsibility. His passing can be too negative for a player who is clearly capable of more. We saw this in the first half, with some positive aerial passes over the right side of the Dundee defence, yet this positivity faded as the match went on. He also did really poorly defensively for the Dundee opener, diving into Ethan Hamilton without getting the ball.
Reo Hatate(7) The best midfielder in the first half, finding some nice spaces with his forward passing. Under pressure in the second half, though, his performance somewhat diminished.
Paulo Bernardo(6) Never had a major influence in the game in the first half, although he showed some nice touches and forward passing in the 45 minutes he did have. In particular, a through ball to Yang and a dinked forward cross to Hatate.
Joel Mvuka(3.5) A really concerning debut. The Norwegian lacked directness and looked uncomfortable in the few one-on-ones he did engage in.
Tomas Cvancara(6) Some really nice flicks in the first half gave Celtic a different option in attack. His overall hold-up play isn’t top class, yet his ball control can bring those around him into play. In the second half, he was generally starved of service.
Yang(6) Playing on the left for the first time in a while, it was a solid enough performance. He came very close to equalising, and did a really nice flick in the first half to set Tierney through.
As mentioned, Celtic Park had a bare look on Saturday evening. An official attendance figure of 24,000 was reported, but, watching the game, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was closer to the 15,000 mark. Wherever you stand on the matter, it was an unusual and sorry sight to see. There are no such plans to repeat this on Wednesday afternoon and there have been reports that Brian Wilson will meet with the fan representatives this afternoon to discuss matters.
Yet, actions do speak louder than words. The only thing that will rightly appease the Celtic faithful is a change in approach of operation from the hierarchy at the very least, if not a change of personnel. It comes after a window, where, with a title on the line, they failed to spend a single penny, instead opting for short-term loan fixes, effectively kicking the can down the road. It makes for a hectic summer in the waiting.
Still, the Scottish Cup was an interesting opportunity to see some of the new players, namely Joel Mvuka and Junior Amadu. Unfortunately, the former seemed completely out of his depth and was shipped at halftime. It’s just 45 minutes of action, so it’s important to keep the small sample size in mind. Yet, his lack of dribbling ability and directness is a real worry. Nevertheless, this is a player who has yet to register a goal or assist in 556 minutes of league football this season, so there is little bargaining power there.
Adamu, in contrast, was the late show hero, with his composed flicking keeping Celtic’s Scottish Cup dream alive. While he didn’t get involved much, the composure he showed at such a crucial moment is promising.
Now, a colossal week awaits in the title race with Hearts facing Hibernian in the Edinburgh derby on Tuesday, before Rangers travel to Motherwell the following day. Moreover, on Sunday afternoon, the pair will face off at Ibrox. Should Celtic pick up maximum points against the bottom two sides this week, they are guaranteed to have made up some ground on either.