From The Official Site (or somewhere)

Saturday 6/8/05

Celtic 2 - 0 Dundee United
At full-time, a Celtic supporter turned to his pal and said: "At least we'll
be able to buy the newspapers again tomorrow", a remark which perfectly
captured how events at Parkhead yesterday may have bridged the gap between
awful recent history and the promise of a brighter future. The match
programme may have carried a picture of Chinese trialist Du Wei and wrongly
captioned it as Shunsuke Nakamura, but there will be no excuse for mistaken
identity from now on. Nakamura's signature was all over Celtic's first SPL
win under Gordon Strachan.
The club has been craving a new hero to embrace and, on yesterday's evidence
at least, there is an outstanding new candidate. In the role occupied with
varying degrees of success by Eyal Berkovic and Lubo Moravcik, Nakamura had
the look of a sorcerer yesterday and Celtic were content to let their
imagination run wild about the contribution he will make.
Strachan's signings have left much to be desired so far, but Nakamura's
touch and range of passing carried a stamp of authenticity. The midfielder,
and his entourage of Japanese media, are about to become a prominent feature
of Celtic's daily life. Jo Venglos could be forgiven anything for being the
man who signed Moravcik, and Strachan may have found the player who will
repeat that trick for him.
Lord knows what Nakamura made of being roped into the huddle, but Parkhead
was in welcoming mood from the outset. The was a roar when his name was read
out before kick-off and during the game an appreciative ripple at worst and
full-scale acclaim at best for his every touch.
His play was entirely predictable, which is no criticism. Just as Strachan
had led everyone to believe, he showed the ingenuity and raw talent which
had persuaded the manager to sign him from Reggina in the first place. He
was mobile, eager for involvement and showed the sense to know when to play
a simple 10-yard pass rather than playing to the grandstands every time.
Even those spells when he drifted out of the game were to be expected.
Nakamura, like Moravcik before him, will have his off days, but yesterday
wasn't one of them.
Given Celtic's recent travails, there is the danger of all sorts of
expectations being placed on Nakamura's shoulders, and it would be easy to
exaggerate the pleasing touches that he displayed yesterday. Nevertheless,
he was at the heart of some of Celtic's most dangerous play. He, Alan
Thompson and Maciej Zurawski exchanged passes down the left before the Pole's
cross found Nakamura diving to connect with a downward header which would
have brought a debut goal after just 65 seconds had it not lacked power and
been cleared near the goal-line by Stuart Duff.
Nakamura was primarily bought to create rather than finish, so the sort of
pass which he played in the 17th minute is liable to become more familiar
than his diving headers. The delivery cleared United's back line to put
Zurawski clear but he was hesitant and Derek Stillie reacted sharply to race
out and block the shot with his legs. How Zurawski needs a fresh start like
Nakamura's.
United's relaxed, bright play meant half an hour passed before Celtic began
to exert a period of sustained pressure, which eventually brought the
opener. Lee Miller operated alone up front but had the presence to unsettle
a brittle back four. With Mark Wilson supplying a series of excellent
deliveries, there was always the chance of United becoming the first side to
score a competitive goal past Artur Boruc. The new goalkeeper looked shaky
when fumbling a couple of corners under pressure.
Parkhead may have been in the mood to lap up Japanese finesse, but it was
raw Welsh force which saw Celtic barge ahead. As soon as Hartson latched on
to Mo Camara's long ball up the left there was the likelihood of him
muscling his way past David McCracken and in on Stillie. So it proved. With
the defender fruitlessly claiming he had been fouled, Hartson shrugged him
off before sliding a low, angled shot inside the post.
A burst of Hartson chances might have quickly buried United but he turned
and shot wide before the interval then hit the bar twice in a minute with
headers from Thompson and Paul Telfer crosses.
United survived and would surely have equalised if Miller's square pass
across the box had fallen to anyone other than Stevie Crawford, whose tame
display was epitomised by a soft finish into Boruc's body. The visitors
wanted a penalty when Bobo Balde bundled into Miller, but the claim was
unconvincing. The second half was an ordeal for United as Celtic kept them
pinned back and provided the platform for Nakamura to flourish again.
By the time he had forced a wonderful diving save out of Stillie from a
sumptuous free-kick, then twisted and turned Duff before drilling a shot
into the side net, it was no wonder he was afforded a standing ovation when
he trotted over to take a corner. Shaun Maloney was perky in a cameo role
from the bench but Nakamura held the stage and almost scored near the end
with a chip which stretched Stillie like a rack.
He was off the field by the time Celtic scored their second. Maloney evaded
McCracken and Wilson before floating over a cross which Beattie met with a
volley that flew past Stillie.
The sparkling contributions from Beattie and Maloney were poignant. For all
the praise lavished on them by Strachan, neither started the match and they
face uphill battles to establish themselves. If there was a downside to
Nakamura's debut, it was the confirmation that nothing stirs the Old Firm
like a luxury import.

Celtic so close to glory but suffer Euro agony

STEPHEN HALLIDAY


GORDON Strachan last night attempted to put a brave face on Celtic's
dramatic exit from European football by insisting his team are good enough
to reclaim the SPL title from Rangers and provide him with a mandate to lead
them back into the Champions League next year.
The first victory and clean sheet of Strachan's already turbulent reign as
Celtic manager was not enough to create history at Parkhead. Attempting to
become the first team to overturn a 5-0 first-leg deficit in a European tie,
Celtic fell just short with a 4-0 win over Slovakian champions Artmedia
Bratislava in their Champions League second qualifying round, second-leg
fixture.
It meant Celtic became the first Scottish club to be knocked out at this
stage of the tournament, which does not even carry the consolation of
dropping into the UEFA Cup, costing them a potential financial windfall of
£10million.
Strachan, heartened by the improved attitude and commitment of his players
last night, now knows he can only fully compensate for the unacceptably
early European failure by guiding his team to domestic supremacy over
Rangers.
"The biggest disappointment for me is that I will have to wait until next
year until we have nights like this again," said Strachan. "I said to Tommy
Burns at the final whistle that it was okay for him, he has had plenty of
these kind of nights, but it was my first one. When we go up a level,
playing wise and tempo wise, then we will have these nights again. When the
squad is fully fit, we will be alright and I believe we are good enough to
win the league.
"The players gave me exactly what I expected of them, both the guys who have
been here doing it for the last five years and the newer ones who stood
shoulder to shoulder with them and didn't let them down. The vision I have
for Celtic must include the heart and character they showed tonight but we
also have to play better and get fitter."
When substitute Craig Beattie scored Celtic's fourth goal eight minutes from
time, following strikes from Alan Thompson, John Hartson and Stephen McManus
which had made the daunting task seem attainable, Strachan had permitted
himself to believe his team could write a new page in the 50-year history of
European club competitions.
"I do believe the first leg was a freak result for Artmedia," he said, "and
we had more chances tonight than they did in Bratislava. I said to the
players at the end that they came so close to the greatest night of their
careers. The club have to look after the financial implications of going out
of Europe just now, my job is to look after the team. I'm a tool of the club
and all I'm worried about is building a better team."
Neil Lennon, the Celtic captain, believes the team's performance last night
disproved any notions that the club's senior players were not 100 per cent
committed to life under Strachan. "I'm pleased for the manager," said
Lennon, "because you could see the players are right behind him. We can take
a lot from that game and performance, we never gave up right to the death.
Maybe the first leg came a bit early for us, with the new players still
trying to integrate, but slowly and surely it is coming together for us. It
augurs well for the rest of the season. Going out of Europe is a setback but
we can have a right go at the league now.
"We have only ourselves to blame for what happened in the first leg, we were
so poor and let ourselves down. That's the most galling thing, but we just
have to push on now and make sure we take six points from our next two
league games then go to Ibrox right up for it."
Vladimir Weiss, the Artmedia coach whose team will now face either Partizan
Belgrade or Sheriff Tiraspol in the third qualifying round, said: "Thank God
the miracle didn't happen, even though it was close. I have been in football
a long time but never known an atmosphere like tonight. The Celtic fans were
like nine extra men for their team."

previous season's games

Having scored only 11 times in an injury-affected season last term, which ended prematurely after he sustained a back injury in January, these were his 29th and 30th goals of this campaign, and enough to beat Aberdeen and re-establish the Parkhead club's lead at the top of the table.

Under pressure after Rangers beat Hearts on Saturday, this was a crucial win and reimposed their dominance on the division. And not for the first time it was Hartson who was their hero.

His first goal followed a frustrating first half for the home team and came just two minutes after the restart, when he bundled home an Alan Thompson free-kick and his second, after 71 minutes, was a close-range finish at the end of a fine move involving Didier Agathe, substitute Craig Beattie and Chris Sutton, who returned following injury and was himself a key figure.

Around those goals Celtic contrived to miss a number of chances and had a decent penalty claim for a Michael Hart challenge on Thompson turned down, although the visitors occasionally did enough to remind them it was a contest and never more so than when Jackie McNamara had to head a Richie Byrne effort off the line.

"In the end we deserved this win," insisted O'Neill. "We put in a big effort and saw it through and after finding ourselves 1-0 or 2-0 down to Aberdeen early on in the last couple of games we were delighted to get to 25 minutes on level terms. It was nail-biting for a while but we had some big performances when it mattered."

One was from Neil Lennon who threw his shirt into the crowd on the final whistle of Celtic's last home game of the season, and possibly the final Parkhead appearance of his career with no new contract yet signed.

But it was Hartson who was fundamental. "We caught Aberdeen sleeping a bit at the start of the second half and the first goal is always so important," he said.

"I could actually have had three or four myself but after last season when I had my back injury I have to be pleased to come back with 30 so far and that's 90 in total for the club.

"But we know at this stage we just have to keep going because all the lads expect Rangers to win their last two games so our mindset is that we have to do the same and we will win the league."

That sounds considerably easier than it might eventually prove but Celtic, labelled by some as a team over the hill, continue to find reserves of strength, commitment and desire that will be important over the next fortnight.

Sutton's return has been timely, as has Didier Agathe's comeback from injury, while Thompson's ability to deliver pinpoint crosses remains a formidable weapon in the Celtic armoury.

Any doubts about their resilience centres on the defence where Bobo Balde, understood to have been watched recently by the Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness, can be erratic.

Rangers had their own share of nerves after being two goals ahead against Hearts, through Thomas Buffel and Marvin Andrews, and the late own-goal from Andrews induced near-panic on Saturday.

There is likely to be more of the same kind of tension at Ibrox, Tynecastle, Easter Road and Fir Park in the coming weekends.

None of which greatly concerns the Aberdeen manager Jimmy Calderwood who conceded after this defeat that his own club's Uefa Cup hopes are all but dead and buried, though he refused to tip a title winner.

"Don't involve me in that," he said. "I just want to make sure we learn from this defeat. We probably had the better first-half chances but lost a bit of confidence when we went behind and the second goal killed us."

Calderwood's woes were compounded by what he fears could be serious ligament injuries to Russell Anderson and Kevin McNaughton.

Celtic quench fire in Rangers cauldron
Dominic Fifield at Ibrox

Rangers -1 Celtic - 2: The massed ranks of green and white in the
Broomloan Road stand were still bouncing in celebration long after the
final whistle here, their raucous taunts chasing crestfallen Rangers
supporters out of the ground. There will be no escaping reality today:
Celtic, victorious in hostile surroundings, have effectively retained
their title.

The psychological damage inflicted on their city rivals by this win, as
much as the five-point advantage chiselled out as a result, has deflated
this year's championship chase. Celtic were hugely dominant where they
might have expected to toil, and the scoreline flatters their hosts. By
the end, the home side's ferocity had degenerated into a whimper. There
may still be four games to go but hope has been drained from the
pursuit.

Martin O'Neill was reluctant to admit as much, though his post-match
assessment was still delivered with the cautious optimism of a man about
to claim his fourth title in five years in charge.

"You can be within touching distance and that can be a long stretch, but
it's in our hands now and we can even afford to make a mistake," he
offered. "We deserved to win this game but, if you take your eye off it,
you can get done."

Little suggests they will, especially if fears over the state of Craig
Bellamy's hamstring are allayed by a scan today. The Welshman inspired
this success, tormenting Rangers' ragged back-line before withdrawing
early in the second period. The striker retains the lippy attitude but
also the pace that recently terrorised the Premiership.

The loanee from Newcastle was a class apart here, and his explosive
display was capped with a wonderfully taken goal beyond the half-hour.
Collecting Alan Thompson's pass, he sprinted down the left with the
ponderous Sotorios Kyrgiakos shadowing him. The Greek might have
shepherded the striker to the touchline but instead watched helplessly
as Bellamy cut inside and curled a shot deliciously from the edge of the
area beyond Ronald Waterreus.

That was his ninth goal since moving from Tyneside in January, the
frustrating memories of Old Firm defeat on his debut exorcised in the
whipped finish.

Bellamy's goal doubled the visitors' lead, leaving home supporters
apoplectic with their own chances visibly ebbing away.

Stilian Petrov, connecting sweetly with Didier Agathe's cross, had put
them ahead while Rangers spluttered in the opening exchanges. The
plastic cup flung at the Bulgarian as he celebrated - provocatively - in
front of the Copland Road stand will surely warrant a Scottish Football
Association inquiry, but it reflected the frustration welling up on
three sides of the ground.

Rangers were disjointed, their midfield woefully ineffective with Barry
Ferguson's influence negligible and Fernando Ricksen eclipsed at his
side.

Where Celtic benefited from Bellamy's pace and John Hartson's rugged
presence when they launched the ball long, the hosts could only reply
with Dado Prso's endeavour and the confidence-shot Novo Nacho. The
Spaniard has now gone six league games without a goal.

Without his bite Rangers were gummy. Marvin Andrews headed against the
bar at the end of the first half and Agathe belted a Kyrgiakos header
from the goalline, but it was only when Steven Thompson muscled into the
furious finale that they found reward.

The Scotland striker thrashed in from close range with three minutes to
play but his consolation was no consolation at all.

"They were a wee bit cuter than us, a bit more streetwise," said Alex
McLeish in defeat.

RANGERS: Waterreus; Ross (Buffel 45), Andrews (Malcolm 83 mins),
Kyrgiakos, Ball, Namouchi, Ricksen, Ferguson, Vignal (Thompson 76 mins),
Novo, Prso. Subs not used: McGregor, Alex Rae, Burke, McCormack. Booked:
Vignal, Novo, Kyrgiakos. Goal: Thompson 88.

CELTIC: Marshall; Agathe, Balde, Varga, McNamara, Petrov, Sutton,
Lennon, Thompson, Bellamy (Beattie 48 mins), Hartson, Beattie (Wallace
90 mins). Subs not used: Douglas, Henchoz, Lambert, Maloney, McGeady.
Booked: Petrov, Bellamy, Agathe, Hartson. Goals: Petrov 21, Bellamy 34.

Referee: S Dougal (Scotland).

From Sporting Life:
16th April 2005

Celtic 3  Aberdeen 2

Craig Bellamy heaped pressure on the Celtic board with a breathtaking
winner as the Bank of Scotland Premier League champions pulled
themselves back from the dead to shatter Aberdeen and increase their
lead over Rangers to five points.

The visitors had looked on course to claim their third consecutive
success on the Hoops' doorstep and give the Ibrox men back the
initiative in the title race after racing to a shock two-goal lead
through Zander Diamond and Darren Mackie goals after 14 minutes.

But Stanislav Varga and John Hartson hauled them back on level terms
either side of the break before Bellamy blasted a goal-of-the-season
contender, intensifying the Celtic fans' claims to make his move loan
move from Newcastle permanent.

If Celtic retain the title they will look back on this afternoon as the
one which clinched it as they entered the final five games and Old Firm
showdown on top of the table with Rangers facing a tricky test on the
East End Park plastic on Sunday.

Just like the Hearts defeat here a fortnight ago, Aberdeen stunned the
SPL leaders by snatching the lead against the run of play in the 11th
minute.

Kevin McNaughton played the ball out to Scott Severin and his cross
found Zander Diamond, who still had plenty to do.

But the young defender swivelled like a prized striker just inside the
box, and powered a right-foot volley through a crowded penalty box and
past the despairing hand of David Marshall and into the bottom corner of
the net.

In a carbon copy of the last home match here, Aberdeen ruthlessly took
full advantage of some terrible defending by Celtic to extend their
shock advantage three minutes later.

Heikkinen did brilliantly to play Muirhead away down the left flank and
he looked up to pick out Darren Mackie in the centre with an even better
ball and the striker left Stanislav Varga for dead to plant his
right-foot shot past Marshall from close range.

The home side stepped up the pressure in the 26th minute when Jackie
McNamara almost dragged them back into the match with a speculative
right-foot shot from 28 yards which Esson had to scurry back quickly to
tip over the crossbar.

Celtic went even closer when Bobo Balde headed Thompson's cross towards
the top corner but Lubomir Blaha jumped at the far post to clear off the
line to save Aberdeen.

But the shell-shocked home fans were celebrating in the 27th minute as
Varga stooped to head McGeady's cross into the top corner from six yards
to raise the temperature.

O'Neill made a change in the 31st minute by bringing on Didier Agathe in
place of Joos Valgaeren for his first appearance through injury since
November 28.

Celtic made a whirlwind start to the second half and Bellamy should have
equalised in the 51st minute when McGeady played him clean through,
after a strong run from Varga through the middle, but Esson came racing
off his line to save his weak effort with his foot.

But Aberdeen failed to clear with Agathe pouncing on a loose ball and
picked out Hartson to blast a right-foot shot past the keeper from eight
yards for his 28th of the campaign.

Aberdeen still caused the home defence plenty of concern at the other
end as McNaughton curled a left-foot shot over the top from the edge of
the area.

O'Neill threw on another of his big guns in the 57th minute with the
introduction of Chris Sutton, who had not fully recovered from a foot
injury sustained in the midweek win at Livingston, for Aiden McGeady,
who had took his place in the side.

But the inspirational Englishman had barely arrived in the box when
Bellamy produced a moment of genius to send the champions hurtling into
the lead in stunning fashion.

Thompson's corner flew all the way to the opposite side of the box and
the Newcastle man drove an unstoppable right-foot volley across Esson
and into the top corner of the net.

But Celtic were fuming in the 62nd minute when they were denied a
certain penalty after Bellamy had been sent sprawling in the area by
Richie Byrne's barge in the back.

O'Neill took off second-half substitute Agathe for Stephane Henchoz late
on but having seemingly been robbed of a penalty, it was a nervous
finale for the champions.

Bellamy could have settled them down with a second in the dying seconds
only to screw his right-foot shot wide.

But he had already done his job as the fans rose to their feet to salute
him at the final whistle.

Hibernian 1-3 Celtic

Celtic produced their best performance for some time to beat Hibs, reducing Rangers' lead at the top of the SPL. Stilian Petrov put the visitors ahead with a coolly-taken goal from inside the six-yard box in the fifth minute. John Hartson doubled the lead, sliding in to poke the ball past Simon Brown from a similar range. Craig Bellamy raced onto Alan Thompson's pass to hit a low shot under the keeper before Guillaume Beuzelin volleyed in a consolation late on. Celtic got off to the best possible start with a goal from their first attack. The ball was slipped to Chris Sutton on the right and though his low ball into the six-yard box was missed by Hartson, Petrov was at the back post where he took a couple of touches before rifling the ball into the net. Bellamy came close to notching his first league goal for his new side with a low drive from 12 yards that was goal-bound until Gary Smith deflected it wide for a corner. Hibs were well below their best and they fell further behind after half-an-hour. Sutton was again the provider, this time from the left. His cross was glanced on by Bellamy to Hartson, who slid the ball past Simon Brown. The goal came at a cost though. Sutton pulled up with what appeared to be a hamstring injury as he prepared to deliver the cross and was subsequently replaced by Aiden McGeady. Derek Riordan passed up a terrific opportunity to reduce the deficit a few minutes later when he latched onto a short back-pass by Bobo Balde, only to see Rab Douglas get a hand to his low shot, allowing Stan Varga to get back to complete the clearance. Douglas was smartly off his line to thwart Riordan again early in the second half before Bellamy almost made it 3-0 with a shot on the turn that flew just over the bar. The Welshman did increase Celtic's lead after 69 minutes having been released by Alan Thompson's pass down the left. With Hibs appealing for offside, Bellamy rounded the keeper and slotted the ball into the net. McGeady hit a dipping shot just over the bar and Ulrik Laursen was denied by a last-ditch tackle as Celtic toyed with the home side in the closing stages. But Hibs did pull a goal back in injury time, substitute Amadou Konte crossing for Beuzelin to cushion a shot past Douglas.   Hibernian: Simon Brown, Whittaker, Caldwell, Smith, Murphy, Orman (Beuzelin 45), Scott Brown, Ian Murray, Shiels, O'Connor (Sproule 81), Riordan (Konte 81). Subs Not Used: Alistair Brown, Fletcher, McDonald, McCluskey. Booked: Caldwell, Ian Murray, Sproule. Goal: Beuzelin 90. Celtic: Douglas, McNamara, Balde, Varga, Laursen, Petrov, Lennon, Sutton (McGeady 32), Thompson (Fernandez 81), Hartson (Beattie 74), Bellamy. Subs Not Used: Marshall, Henchoz, Lambert, Wallace. Booked: Lennon, Balde. Goals: Petrov 5, Hartson 31, Bellamy 69. Att: 15,787 Ref: K Clark

Bellamy boosts Celtic

Graham Clark at Broadwood
Monday February 28, 2005
The Guardian

Juninho lit up a town once labelled the ugliest in Britain with a little
Brazilian magic as Celtic cruised into the semi-finals yesterday.

Cumbernauld, home to Clyde, is not somewhere immediately associated with
sambas or a carnival atmosphere. Yet Juninho and the visit of Celtic
provided both.

The World Cup winner laid on three of the goals and served notice to
Martin O'Neill that he might yet have something to offer, even though
his likely reward for this performance will be to be relegated to the
substitutes' bench again for the Premierleague match against Dundee on
Wednesday.

Celtic joined Dundee United, Hibernian and Hearts in the last four
thanks to two goals from Stanislav Varga, a penalty from Alan Thompson
and further efforts from Stilian Petrov and Craig Bellamy, the
Welshman's first since joining from Newcastle on loan.

Although it was fairly straightforward in the end, there was a hint of
giant-killing in an interesting first half when Clyde matched their
illustrious opponents and were left to rue a decision by the referee
Craig Thomson that might have changed the game.

After half an hour the official watched Craig Bryson negotiate several
desperate challenges, most notably from Petrov, before firing a fine
shot past Rab Douglas only to stop the home celebrations in mid-flow to
give Clyde a foul. The protests were long and entirely pointless, and to
rub salt into their wounds Darren Sheridan's free-kick was touched round
the post by Douglas.

That was perhaps the kick up the backside Celtic needed and after 40
minutes they went ahead when Varga headed home Juninho's corner. If it
was an unconvincing first half there was a dramatic improvement from
Celtic after the break. Three minutes in, Thompson scored from the
penalty spot after the substitute Shaun Maloney, on for Chris Sutton,
was brought down and further goals followed from Petrov on the hour,
Varga again after 68 minutes and Bellamy four minutes later.

In the end it was entirely predictable but the First Division team will
have enjoyed the experience - the referee's decision aside - and will
reap the benefit from a sell-out 8,200 crowd together with television
money.

"Yet we're disappointed," admitted their manager Billy Reid. "We didn't
deserve 5-0 although we gave away cheap goals and you can't do that.

"But I was pleased with other aspects. I felt we were the better team in
the first half and although I have no problem over the one we had
disallowed I didn't think we got much from the referee in the rest of
the match."

O'Neill, meanwhile, admitted his side were "stodgy" in the first half
and is now concerned about injuries to Sutton, Stéphane Henchoz and
Maloney.

On the plus side, however, he insisted: "I was very pleased with
Maloney's contribution because he's been out for a year through injury,
and it was good to see Bellamy get his first goal."

Man of the Match: Juninho (Celtic)

January 9th

Celtic 2  Rangers 1

John Hartson celebrated his new contract with the second-half Old Firm
winner to send rivals Rangers crashing out of the Tennent's Scottish Cup
at the third round stage.
Chris Sutton recovered from his sending off during the bad-tempered
clash in November by firing Celtic ahead before the break only for
Fernando Ricksen to equalise with a glancing header.
But former Rangers target Hartson, who signed a two-year extension to
his contract on Friday, capitalised on more shoddy defending to put
Celtic into the fourth round draw.
Both sides of the divide were under immense pressure to behave
themselves on the park after the unsavoury scenes which marred Celtic's
league defeat at Ibrox in November.
The big Glasgow showdown, as always, started at an explosive pace and
Fernando Ricksen found himself in the wars after just three minutes.
The ball ran away from John Hartson, who signed a new contract on
Friday, and he cut down the Dutchman but escaped a yellow card from
referee Hugh Dallas.
Rangers started the brighter after two successive victories over their
arch rivals and rejuvenated Celtic goalkeeper Robert Douglas needed to
sprint off his line to claim at the feet of Dado Prso in the eighth
minute.
Dallas evened things up moments later when he refused to book Ricksen
for a crude challenge on Stilian Petrov, who saw his volley was saved by
Stefan Klos moments later.
But the German made a great save to deny Celtic the opener in the 14th
minute after a trademark Alan Thompson free-kick had caused problems in
the Rangers box.
He curled the ball to the back post where Hartson was lurking but he
watched in disbelief as Klos somehow stopped his header from point-blank
range by his post and Marvin Andrews was in the right place at the right
time to clear from under his crossbar.
The Rangers defender almost became a hero at the other end as he rose
above the Celtic defence from Djordjic's corner but headed over the
crossbar from five yards.
McLeish looked on anxiously as both men hit the deck after clashing in
the move but he was relieved to see them return to the action after
receiving treatment.
Dallas finally found it necessary to stamp his authority on the game in
the 21st minute by booking Namouchi for bringing down Petrov.
Andrews needlessly put his team-mates under pressure with a stupid barge
into the back of Sutton.
But the former Livingston man made amends by heading Aiden McGeady's
cross behind for a corner although Klos looked poised to catch the ball.
It seems amazing that no clubs from England have come in for the German
and he illustrated his worth to Rangers again in the 28th minute as they
survived a goalmouth scramble.
McGeady's cross caused the problems as both players fought for the ball
inside the area and the youngster's effort looked destined for the back
of the net but a grounded Klos clawed the ball away from his goal and
his defence were able to clear the danger.
But there was little he could do to prevent the champions from taking
the lead with the simplest of moves in the 37th minute.
Hartson flicked on Douglas' long punt downfield and Sutton got ahead of
Andrews to prod the ball past the advancing goalkeeper and into the back
of the net.
The petulant Ricksen let his frustration get the better of him and he
earned himself a booking moments later when he fouled the jubilant
goalscorer.
The Dutchman then had the Celtic fans on their feet again as he curled a
free-kick over the crossbar after Thompson had brought Novo down.
Rangers equalised one minute into the second-half as they capitalised on
some desperately poor defending.
Alan Hutton swung an inviting cross into the danger area and Ricksen was
quick to react to plant his header across goal and into the bottom
corner of the net.
That woke up the sleeping giants and they carved a decent opening in the
51st minute which Petrov failed to convert.
The Bulgarian did well to control Thompson's cross and cut inside
Gregory Vignal but he struck his left-foot effort straight at Klos.
But the German needed Zurab Khizanishvili to come to his rescue moments
later when he failed to catch McGeady's intended cross and as he crashed
to the ground on his back, he was relieved to see the Georgian had got
back on his line to hook the ball away.
Andrews was the next Rangers hero in the 56th minute as he too got back
on his line to keep the ball out after Sutton had headed Thompson's
corner goalwards from seven yards.
Rangers responded themselves by slicing open their opponents' defence
but Douglas was alert to Ricksen's clever lob over the top and he
gathered under pressure from Novo.
Rae was also far too casual moments later as Sutton dispossessed him but
the Englishman could only curl the ball over the top from outside the
box.
Celtic players appealed for a penalty when Thompson's free-kick struck
Djordjic before Hartson headed McGeady's cross over the top from under
the crossbar.
McLeish responded by bringing on new signing Thomas Buffel for Djordjic
in the 67th minute.
One of Buffel's first contributions was to clip the heels of Agathe but
from Thompson's resulting free-kick Sutton's glancing header flew wide.
Novo almost got on the end of Andrews' long ball before Hartson sparked
wild celebrations by firing his side back into the lead in the 77th
minute.
Agathe's cross seemed harmless enough as Sutton missed it but Andrews
failed to deal with it and the Welshman arrived at the back post to poke
the ball past Klos.
At the other end Douglas threw himself to his right to touch Novo's
backheel, from Prso's ball, around the post as Rangers pushed for
another leveller.
Petrov could have killed the Ibrox men off with seven minutes remaining
after great work from Sutton but his right-foot shot was comfortably
saved by Klos.
Hartson was booked late in front of the visiting fans but that only
added to his hero status among the celebrating Parkhead supporters at
the final whistle.

Mon 3 Jan 2005

GLENN GIBBONS
AT CELTIC PARK

Celtic 2 Hartson (15), Sutton (pen, 57)
Livingston 1 Hamilton (36)
Referee: C Thomson. Attendance: 57,593.

ONE of the many distinguishing strengths of champions is a capacity for
exploiting any weakness in would-be challengers. When in ruthless mode, they
tend to do so with more savagery than Celtic summoned yesterday, when
punishing Rangers for the loss of two points at Dundee United the day
before.

That Martin O'Neill's side should see off Livingston by the minimum margin
in a match they were expected to win by a distance - and requiring Chris
Sutton's penalty kick, at that - was due in large part to a phenomenal
demonstration of heroic goalkeeping by Colin Meldrum.

But the former Kilmarnock man's series of wonderful saves was compressed
into a ten-minute period after the interval and it was notable - perhaps
even disquieting for O'Neill and his supporters - that Celtic appeared to
lose much of their momentum during the lengthy spells that followed each of
their goals.

With Rangers due at the stadium on Sunday on Tennent's Scottish Cup duty,
perhaps energy conservation was on their minds. But, without the
re-energising equaliser Jim Hamilton gave Livingston near half-time - after
John Hartson had opened the scoring - the match could have been considerably
less intriguing. And, but for an excellent save from Rab Douglas from Gus
Bahoken in stoppage time, the Parkhead side would have suffered the same
fate as their closest pursuers.

That first goal from Hartson may have seemed inevitable, but only to those
who had examined the difference in status and form of the two teams. As the
play itself unfolded over the preceding 15 minutes, there had been no stark
warning of impending damage to Livingston.

Celtic, predictably, had enjoyed the bulk of the possession, but they had
been more prodding than incisive, as if probing for the softest, most
suitable spot at which to make the first cut.

As it has so often in the past four years, it transpired that their
opponents were most vulnerable to the set piece. Hartson himself was fouled
by Oscar Rubio as he attempted to bore down the right and, when Alan
Thompson made the delivery with his accustomed expertise, the big Welshman
glanced the header far to the right of Meldrum from about 12 yards.

On the touchline, Richard Gough clearly simmered. We had the testimony of
the newly-installed Livi manager himself in midweek that he would spend days
preparing his defence on ways in which to cope with the champions' most-used
and most dangerous weapon.

As the ball crossed the line, the former Rangers defender wore the kind of
disdainful look that spoke of his frustration at his players' failure to
execute the preventative measures they had been practising. But Gough and
his team are not the first - and almost certainly will not be the last - to
discover that neutralising Celtic's deadliness in these situations can be as
problematic as keeping the wind from blowing.

And yet, having established an advantage, Celtic were, for long periods
afterwards, more studied than impulsive and improvisational, playing almost
a geometric style that relied on patient exploration of angles and
considered manoeuvres, rather than explosive inventiveness and flair.

Aiden McGeady, unsurprisingly, was a consistent exception, the young winger
constantly attempting to create a superiority in numbers for his own team by
taking a couple of opponents out with some ball artistry.

It was he who conjured the dribble and through pass from the left from which
Stilian Petrov would have doubled the home side's lead but for the alertness
of Meldrum, the goalkeeper rushing from his line to block the ball at the
Bulgarian's feet. Even if there was, however, not much evidence of a severe
thrashing for the visitors, their equaliser seemed even less likely.

Bahoken began the sequence of events with a speculative cross from far out
on the right which caused Douglas suddenly to have to leap and stretch to
touch the ball away for a corner kick. From there, it was played out to
Goran Stanic, whose poor attempt at a shot simply sent the ball feebly
towards the assembled bodies in the penalty area.

There seemed to be a general reluctance to attack the ball and. somehow, it
made its way through to the isolated Hamilton, who, looking utterly
surprised, had only to deflect it past Douglas with his right foot from
eight yards' range.

It proved to be an ill-advised challenge to Celtic's pride. The home team's
aggressiveness from the very start of the second half was so ferocious
compared with the first that, long before Sutton restored the advantage,
they could have been at least another two ahead - and would have been, but
for the extraordinary form of Meldrum.

Even O'Neill's arms were raised to acclaim a goal from Hartson's powerful
header from Thompson's corner kick when Meldrum, improbably, kept the ball
out. He frustrated the big striker again when Hartson chested down a high,
looping cross from Sutton and volleyed - a seemingly unmissable chance -
from ten yards out.

He would do similar from Sutton's header off an accurate chip from Hartson,
but not before the Englishman had converted the penalty kick awarded for
hand ball against Hamilton. The striker's fierce protest at being penalised
as he blocked a header from Bobo Balde left him in danger of a red card, as
he had been cautioned seven minutes earlier for encroachment at a free kick.

Sutton, characteristically unperturbed, slid the ball low to the left of
Meldrum, who had chosen to throw himself to his right.

Celtic: Douglas; McNamara, Varga, Balde, Laursen; Petrov, Lennon, Thompson,
McGeady (Juninho 85); Hartson, Sutton. Subs not used:
Marshall, Lambert, Maloney, Wallace, McManus.

Livingston: Meldrum; Bahoken, Dorado, Rubio, McNamee; Brittain (Dair 86),
O'Brien, Lovell, Stanic (Adam 86); Snodgrass (Libbra 65), Hamilton.
Subs not used: Fleming, Harding, McPake, Easton.

The Guardian

No goals and no glory as Celtic slip out of Europe

Graham Clark at Parkhead
Wednesday December 8, 2004

Celtic's European dream was undone partly in Glasgow and partly in far-away Donetsk as the Scottish champions were left to concentrate on domestic matters only for the rest of the season.

Even the consolation prize of a place in the Uefa Cup was snatched from them despite a decent home performance and draw against the Italian giants Milan. Events in the Ukraine, where group rivals for that Uefa Cup spot Shakhtar Donetsk beat Barcelona 2-0, ensured the Parkhead team had to win and they failed to do that at home so they can have no real complaints.

The visitors left players of the calibre of Rino Gattuso, Clarence Seedorf, Hernan Crespo and Kaka on the bench at the outset which suggested they, having already qualified, might not be as anxious to win as the home team.

It was an experienced Milan side nevertheless and it was just as well for they had to weather an early Celtic storm that was led by the precocious talents of Aiden McGeady.

The Republic of Ireland youngster danced past Fabrizio Coloccini after just three minutes but Chris Sutton's header from his cross went wide.

McGeady himself then tried his luck with a fierce drive over the bar but that early pressure came to nothing and there was no sign of glory in Glasgow while the news filtered through of the drama in Donetsk as Shakhtar took an early two-goal lead over Barcelona in the other crucial group game.

Milan, indeed, appeared for most of the rest of the first half to have the measure of the Scottish champions and with no variation on the theme of a a barrage of high balls forward for Sutton and John Hartson it became a fairly comfortable night for Paolo Maldini and company.

The Italians even ventured forward and Magnus Hedman saved well from Andriy Shevchenko before Serginho hit the woodwork with the goalkeeper well beaten.

Milan also looked for a penalty after a Bobo Baldé challenge on the Brazilian but that was dismissed although a Neil Lennon foul on Massimo Ambrosini was not and he was booked.

Then, in the dying minutes of the half, Celtic launched themselves forward once more and Dida brilliantly touched away a close-range Hartson volley and then somehow blocked a Sutton effort to keep the scoreline blank.

Celtic continued where they left off after the break. Stanislav Varga headed an Alan Thompson corner over and it was only Sutton's surprise at a Maldini mistake that prevented him from getting on the end of a neat Hartson flick after another Thompson corner.

Yet it remained a stalemate and even the introduction of Crespo for Shevchenko and Henri Camara for Joos Valgaeren failed to alter the pattern. Celtic then sent on Juninho for Stilian Petrov, a pre-match injury doubt, in a last throw of the dice.

It was a frantic finale as Milan, with Seedorf on for Rui Costa, tried to keep Celtic at bay and Valgaeren was denied a penalty after claiming he was pushed by Alessandro Costacurta.

CELTIC 2 Hartson 18, 83
HIBERNIAN 1 Caldwell 76

CELTIC didn't seem to give much consideration to Hibernian's offer to
postpone yesterday's encounter. Made in order that Martin O'Neill's side
enjoyed more rest time before the Champions League visit of AC Milan on
Tuesday, oh boy how they ought to have done so. For, against a scintillating
Hibernian, hardly helpful evidence of their deterioration was anywhere you
cared to looked in a scratched-out win. And their supporters scratching out
their eyes might be preferable to watching the Italians doing their worst in
two days' time.

The magnificence of both Hibs and matchwinner John Hartson were the themes
that could only but run through the post-match comments from those involved.
Tony Mowbray's tyros handed Celtic a lesson in driving, possession football
and earned effusive praise from O'Neill, who spoke of them "playing with
great freedom" and "producing splendid football" in an encounter he admitted
Hibs did not deserve to lose. It was cruel on the Leith club, however, that
the goal-ravenous Welshman served up a masterclass in chance conversion.

A double took his goal tally for the season to 17 and nudged Celtic a point
above Rangers, who can regain Premierleague leadership away to Inverness
Caledonian Thistle today. Even a 24-hour stint as table toppers looked out
of reach for Celtic, mind you, when Gary Caldwell struck in the 76th minute
to cancel out an 18th-minute effort from Hartson. Until the hulking striker
produced an imperious finish seven minutes from time, that is.

Hartson's performance led O'Neill to reiterate Celtic's desire to extend the
contract of a player who will be free to negotiate with other clubs come
January 1. If Celtic are to negotiate a path to the UEFA Cup, meanwhile,
Hartson's efforts may not be enough. Their best hope must now rest with
Barcelona beating Shakhtar Dontesk to declare the outcome of events at
Celtic Park on Tuesday irrelevant. Their task has not been made any easier
by the ankle injury sustained by Stilian Petrov yesterday. Now a doubt for
Milan, it is a similar story with Didier Agathe and Stephen Pearson, who
both missed out against Hibs with groin problems. "I don't know what we'll
get from Milan, but if they play as well as Hibs did it's going to be
interesting," said O'Neill, paying Mowbray's team the ultimate compliment.

It was one they deserved. "We did produce some great football today and I'd
like to think we are making progress," said Mowbray. To the fore in the
Edinburgh club's efforts that Mowbray feels can "inspire" them for future
Celtic Park visits was unquestionably Derek Riordan. It was little surprise
that after the "will he, won't he play" saga, prompted by his night in the
cells following his arrest in the early hours of Thursday morning, he was
handed a starting place.

While Riordan might then have been dealt something of a get out of jail
scot-free card, it was Celtic who played one during a first period in which
they were so often second best to crafty, wispish opponents. So intense was
O'Neill's side edginess, indeed, it was possible to wonder if the Scottish
champions had forgotten it wasn't yesterday that they were facing up to the
might of AC Milan.

The supposedly redeemed Magnus Hedman, responsible for a costly error in the
draw at Dundee the previous week, was uncertainty personified. Within 55
seconds he had spilled a harmless looking cross from Riordan to have the
home supporters' hearts in their mouths. These organs were almost projected
from the same gobs when he was slow to seize on a pass-back from Jackie
McNamara that almost allowed Riordan in, and it was likewise when he dropped
another high ball in the second period. "I was lucky today," he conceded
afterwards. "I don't know if I had soap in my gloves but the ball wouldn't
bloody stick."

Hedman's display was merely in keeping with his team-mates, though. The home
side's discomfiture was in sharp contrast to the fluidity and conviction
demonstrated by their opponents. Seeming to sense the opportunity to exploit
Celtic's difficulties in doing even simple things adequately, Dean Shiels,
in a roving role off Hibs' front two, especially proved difficult to pin
down.

It was Celtic, in fact, who were consistently penned in, their play
characterised by stray passing and a general disjointedness. Then, 18
minutes in, they scored, despite having never previously threatened to do
so. Hartson was practically on his knees when meeting an Aiden McGeady
corner and bulleting a header beyond Simon Brown.

It was not a goal to lift Celtic from their knees, however, and five minutes
later, Steven Whittaker was desperately unlucky to see a ferocious drive
from the edge of the area thump the base off the post.

The pattern continued in the second half. Yet, Henri Camara, on for Petrov,
twice squandered fine shooting opportunities. And six minutes after a second
weak attempt, Hibs appeared as if they would make Celtic pay with a
76th-minute equaliser that was the product of a Riordan corner flicked on by
Ian Murray to allow Caldwell, on the volley, to scoop the ball in at the
back post.

But Hartson had the final say when he weaved through Hibs' backline and
tucked away a low effort with aplomb, though a number of the visiting
players were unhappy with a Camara throw-in that allowed McGeady to feed the
striker. With each passing week, the Welshman's claims for a new deal become
ever more outstanding as Celtic become a team ever further removed from one
who would have such a description applied to their efforts.

28th November 2004

DUNDEE 2-2 CELTIC
Referee: C Richmond. Attendance: 9,539

THE playground logic so cherished by football fans will contend that Dundee
must be able to live in Barca’s company if they can thrive like they did here
against Celtic.

In doing the improbable and matching the champions, Jim Duffy’s side lifted
themselves off the foot of the SPL, where they found themselves rudely planted
on Saturday without even having played a game. Sweeter still, perhaps, is the
identity of the team they deposit there instead, although this was not a day
for lingering over local triumphs.

The point Dundee won here courtesy of two superb finishes from lone striker
Steve Lovell gave the league a shake at both top and bottom. Its ramifications
were felt principally in Govan, with Rangers subsequently able to take
advantage of Celtic’s slip to reach the summit.

It’s been a long time since Dundee could compare themselves with a side like
Barcelona but yesterday Dens Park proved every bit as inhospitable to the
visitors as the Nou Camp. And if Celtic were rightly lauded for a redoubtable
performance in Catalonia last Wednesday then Dundee should receive all the
praise going for a showing shot through with effort and distinguished further
by a master class in marksmanship from a striker apparently operating at some
way short of 100 per cent fit.

Goals either side of half-time from the virus-afflicted Steve Lovell initially
roused Celtic into making a comeback and then finally deflated them after their
efforts to claim the initiative had seemed ready to bear the ultimate fruit. A
scrappy strike from Henri Camara and a tap-in from John Hartson that was
redolent of his equaliser in the Nou Camp last midweek appeared to have averted
the sort of constitutional crisis which occurs whenever one Old Firm side is
knocked off the perch by the other.

While Celtic might have snatched a win in the final minute but for a heroic
goal-line clearance by Calum MacDonald, it is also true that Lovell could have
helped himself to a memorable hat-trick. Referee Charlie Richmond ruled out a
scintillating finish inside the box, interpreting the striker’s boot had been
too high when bringing the ball down before sweeping it into the net. No one
would could convince manager Jim Duffy this had been the case and he was
supported in this view by a strong body within the stadium. In the final
analysis, though, the shared point acknowledged the part played by both sides
on an entertaining afternoon.

This was exactly the kind of appointment which required all of O’Neill’s fabled
motivational powers, with the spirits of his team having perhaps begun to slip
as soon as the team bus had swung its nose onto the road from Glasgow,
destination Dens Park. When there they found a number of elements boding ill,
including a bitterly cold wind, a relatively sparse crowd and a team ready to
scrap for anything in an effort to pull themselves away from the bottom of the
table.

O’Neill had anticipated all of this, forecasting on radio that Dundee would
prove every bit as difficult as Barcelona. This charming thesis seemed to have
been more than the usual manager’s platitude when Lovell opened the scoring
eight minutes before half-time from an acute angle, after Mark Fotheringham’s
superbly weighted through ball had curled on to the end of the striker’s toe.

While the lowering of sights from the top of La Liga to the bottom of the SPL
was always going to require some re-adjustment on the part of Celtic it was
still somewhat surprising to find fretting reporters tapping the shoulders of
those in front in search of the last time Dundee beat Celtic at Dens Park. The
answer, rather absurdly, is 16 years ago, when a Tommy Coyne mis-kick flew past
Alan Rough in the visitors’ goal.

Such ruminations were proved redundant by the midway point of the second half,
Celtic having grasped a hold of the match. Dundee’s right flank had looked
vulnerable all afternoon and the impressive Stephen Pearson finally made his
promptings pay. A cross of his eventually found its way to Hartson having
bobbled around the goal-line. The Welsh striker’s attempt at diverting it back
into the net wasn’t impressive but the mis-cue landed at Camara’s feet, and was
swiftly transferred into the goal.

Dundee were living dangerously and eight minutes later looked to have abandoned
all hope of profiting from this encounter when another surge down the left -
this time from Aiden McGeady - resulted in the home side reaping the maximum
punishment. McGeady’s intelligent ball to the back-post found Hartson in what
appears to be his niche territory, and he converted his side’s second from
close range.

If anything hints at Celtic’s reduced powers of late then it is what occurred
in the remaining portion of the game. Instead of closing out victory, they let
the lead slip.

Lovell thought he had equalised with a fine strike on 67 minutes but was
penalised for a debatable high foot. Ten minutes later he again found the
finish and this time also the fortune his determination deserved. Chasing what
seemed like an overly ambitious through ball from Garry Brady the striker
pounced on the critical break-down in communications between Bobo Balde and
goalkeeper Magnus Hedman, and saw his lob squeeze into the net between bar and
far post.

Dundee: Soutar, McNally, Mann, Smith, Hernandez Santos, Robb, Fotheringham,
MacDonald, Anderson (Barrett 90), Lovell, Cerdeira (Brady 65). Subs not used:
Murray, Larsen, Sutton, Jablonski, Caballero.

Celtic: Hedman, Agathe, Valgaeren, Balde, McNamara, McGeady, Lennon, Petrov,
Pearson, Hartson, Camara. Subs not used: Marshall, Sylla, Juninho, Lambert,
Laursen, Wallace, Lawson.

Celtic thrown flimsy lifeline by Thompson

Graham Clark at Parkhead
Wednesday November 3, 2004
The Guardian

Celtic breathed new hope into their hitherto unproductive campaign last night when they managed a thoroughly deserved win to earn their first points in Group F.

Yet with only two matches remaining, at Barcelona and then here against Milan, reaching the next stage may still be beyond them. "We have nothing to lose when we go to the Nou Camp for our next game and we'll give it a go," said Martin O'Neill, the Celtic manager. "Barcelona and Milan probably only need one point more each but we are conceding nothing. Realistically, though, six points would also give us a fighting chance of the Uefa Cup spot."

This was a much-improved performance from the Scottish champions, although they were helped by an indisciplined Ukrainian team who had their captain Anatoly Tymoshchuk sent off in the first half, to be joined by his team-mate Cosmin Barcauan in the second.

O'Neill had raised a few eyebrows with the selection of Aiden McGeady, only 18 and handed a start in place of Juninho. The young midfielder produced an impressive touch to help set up a move inside 45 seconds, however, and it should have led to the opening goal. He found Alan Thompson, who found John Hartson, and his quick ball sent Henri Camara scampering away but his shot was skewed well wide.

Celtic, predictably, forced the pace and after 25 minutes went ahead in bizarre circumstances. The goalkeeper Lastuvka, who had already been warned about wasting time, was penalised for holding the ball for 13 seconds, seven more than the regulations allow, and presented the Bhoys with a wonderfully positioned free-kick 16 yards out. Stilian Petrov touched the ball to Thompson, and his low drive beat the keeper easily.

Shakhtar's furious coach Mircea Lucescu spoke just half a dozen terse sentences afterwards. "This is my protest," he said. "We are working for nothing and the same thing happened to us with [our defeats at] Milan and Barcelona. We didn't come here to lose and we dominated the game. It's incredible. What's this about the six-second rule?

And with that he turned on his heland was gone.

Celtic were grateful for it, however, and things got better after 40 minutes when Barcauan was booked for dissent. Two minutes later Camara, moving swiftly on to a pass from McGeady, was chopped down by the last man Tymoshchuk, and he was sent off.

With the comfort of a goal and an extra man, the Parkhead club remained in control after the interval. Indeed they should have doubled their lead after 56 minutes, when Hartson was left unattended but his shot was blocked by Lastuvka and the goalkeeper did well to save the rebound from Petrov.

Celtic benefited further two minutes later when Barcauan was shown a second yellow for a foul on Petrov. Yet for all that the hosts struggled to impose themselves. "We played some delightful stuff in the first half especially and I think we still have a chance in the Champions League," said O'Neill, perhaps a shade optimistically.

With both sides pointless before the clash in the Central Stadium, the defeat means Celtic are now bottom of Group F and in danger of missing out on a consolation UEFA Cup spot.

After an all-action opening, the Ukraine outfit gave their opponents a warning of just what was to come when Ciprian Andrei Marica crashed a shot wide when he got a sight of goal in the fourth minute and Zvonimir Vukic blazed over from the edge of the box.

The wounded visitors went behind in the 56th minute when Matuzalem was given too much space to unleash a low shot which David Marshall could only get the slightest of touches to as the ball flew into the back of his net.

Celtic's Champions League dream and even their hopes of a consolation place in the UEFA Cup were dealt what could be a fatal blow in the 62nd minute.

Matuzalem exchanged passes with Zvonimir Vukic and he emphatically fired the ball under Marshall to compound the visitors' misery.

Brazilian Brandao wrapped it up with over 12 minutes to go when he brilliantly dinked the ball over Marshall and into the net.

Camara should have got a consolation for Celtic but he headed wide from five yards late in the game, a missed chance which summed up another luckless and miserable European experience.

Sunday Herald - 26 September 2004
Celtic 3-0 Dunfermline
Cakewalk before the catwalk
Alan Campbell at Celtic Park



OPINION was divided about the merit of this game as preparation for
Wednesday night's glamour tie against AC Milan in the Italian capital of
fashion, but in many respects Celtic could not have asked for better.
Dunfermline's tepid opposition amounted to little more than a gentle 90
minute training exercise for the home side, who scored three at their
leisure and suffered no injuries.
As he plotted ahead of the Champions League tie, Martin O'Neill was
delighted that Henri Camara scored a double and generally proved a suitable
foil for the ever-troublesome John Hartson. "Five goals in five starts is
not too bad," pointed out the Celtic manager.
With Chris Sutton likely to play a part in the San Siro, and Didier Agathe,
rested yesterday because of a dead leg, almost certain to be fit, O'Neill
plans to fly out to Milan today to watch Milan play Lazio in Serie A. His
Champions League opponents will not have it so easy.
The Celtic manager is fed up with questions about the standard of opposition
his side meets most weekends. "A blind man could see it's a step up to play
AC Milan and Barcelona," he snapped. "Let's not discredit the SPL - we had a
hard game against Hibs last week. You can't change the league."
O'Neill resisted the temptation to bring in any of the youngsters who had
torn Falkirk apart on Wednesday night. Dunfermline, with their away strip of
red and black stripes may have given the most passing of resemblances to
Milan, but once referee Alan Freeland blew his whistle it was clear we were
in for one of the worst kind of Premierleague mis-matches.
When Davie Hay was in charge of Livingston, he returned to his spiritual
home in the east end of Glasgow on several occasions and wasn't let down by
his players. Within minutes, he must have realised he was in for a long,
excruciating afternoon.
The manner in which Hartson easily shrugged off Scott Wilson's weak
challenge in Celtic's first attack set the tone. If the striker's cut back
had fallen to Camara, instead of behind him, the quickest goal of the day
would have been recorded.
Dunfermline, completely pinned back and reduced to rushed clearances which
merely triggered off further Celtic attacks, survived good efforts from
Stilian Petrov and Juninho before the latecomers had even reached the
comfort of their seats.
For Dunfermline the discomfort continued. Hay was forced to make a change
when he replaced the injured Gary Mason with Aaron Labonte. Or rather
several changes, as he switched from 4-4-2 to 3-5-2 with Labonte on the left
side of the back three with Wilson and Andrius Skerla and his full backs
pushing up to the midfield.
The switch only proved that it was the personnel, rather than the choice of
system, which was at fault. Poor marking and toothless tackling were
compounded by needless mistakes and Celtic, inevitably, went ahead in 19
minutes. An Alan Thompson corner was flicked on by Momo Sylla and Stanislav
Varga stretched his frame along the turf to score with his studs.
With eight outfield players pressed back, and Craig Brewster having to drop
deep into his own half to make a token effort to disrupt the constant Celtic
build-ups, it was little wonder that David Marshall was as busy as a
striking baggage handler.
The only wonder was that Celtic were only one ahead, but after Juninho had
flashed the ball over the bar there was finally a moment of encouragement
for the visitors when Greg Shields sent over a cross which Brewster volleyed
past the post.
Derek Stillie, a beacon of competence in a defence all at sea, lost his
second goal in the 37th minute. A minute earlier he had made a fine
one-handed save from Camara, but the loan signing from Wolves returned
quickly to haunt him.
Thompson was again the provider, this time with a free kick from the left,
and Camara's first header was blocked by the Dunfermline goalkeeper. The
ball fell obligingly back on to Camara's forehead and persistence was
rewarded.
There was just enough excitment to keep the Celtic supporters amused, and
they should have been acclaiming a third goal when Hartson, unmarked just
past the far post, headed the ball weakly across the face of the bar.
The second half continued in exactly the same vein, with the third, and
final goal arriving in the 53rd minute. There was an almighty, and
old-fashioned, scramble in the Dunfermline penalty area, with Skerla
appearing to head the ball against his own bar before Varga made a
goal-bound lunge. The ball was again cleared and as legs flailed wildly in
its direction it fell to Camara who calmly scored his second.
Ross Wallace, brought on as a substitute for Petrov, could have scored a
hat-trick, but the Celtic supporters at least enjoyed dancing footwork from
him and Aiden McGeady, who arrived later.

Celtic 8-1 Falkirk Paul Lambert scored Celtic's fourth goal of the evening Ross Wallace hit a hat-trick as Celtic hammered Falkirk to reach the quarter-finals of the CIS Insurance Cup. Momo Sylla and Wallace both found the net inside the first six minutes, Bobo Balde headed in a corner and Paul Lambert shot home right on half-time. A Stephen McManus header caught the Bairns out at another corner before Wallace thumped in a 25-yard free kick. Andy Thomson scored for Falkirk but Wallace and Aiden McGeady pitched in with strikes in the last few minutes. With Celtic facing a vital Champions League Group F showdown against AC Milan next week, manager Martin O'Neill made eight changes to his starting line-up. 90 seconds in Juninho dispossessed Mark Campbell near the half-way line and ran at the Falkirk defence before playing a perfectly-weighted ball to the overlapping Sylla, who coolly side-footed the ball past an exposed Darren Hill. Celtic doubled their lead after just five minutes and Juninho was again the provider as he pounced on another mistake, this time from Scott MacKenzie, and he played the ball out wide for Sylla. The Brazilian playmaker expected the ball to be pulled back into his path but his team-mate hesitated. Fortunately for him Wallace arrived behind to find the bottom corner. Falkirk almost hit back in the 33rd minute when Rab Douglas pushed out a shot from Darryl Duffy before Joos Valgaeren blocked a follow-up effort from the same player. Douglas was again called upon in the 35th minute to scramble away a low drive from David Nicholls. But Celtic added another goal two minutes later as Balde leapt above the Bairns defence to head McGeady's cross home. Hill had to turn a Sylla shot round the post, before Balde swivelled and fired just past the upright. Lambert did beat Hill in the final minute of the half, when he arrived at the far post to steer Sylla's cross into the empty net. Defender Stephen McManus also got his name on the scoresheet when he headed McGeady's corner home from close range in the 48th minute. McGeady, the highly-rated Republic of Ireland youngster, was relishing the time and space and he whistled a powerful effort past the angle soon afterwards. Wallace did find the net in spectacular fashion after 56 minutes when he curled a left-footed free-kick into the top corner from distance. Falkirk did give their vocal supporters a goal to celebrate in the 67th minute when Thomson burst through from Duffy's pass and forced the ball through Douglas' legs. Wallace then fired past Hill from close range after 84 minutes. McGeady was not to be outdone and he stepped inside a challenge before cracking a left-footed shot over Hill and into the net in the dying seconds. Celtic: Douglas, Valgaeren, Balde, Laursen, McManus (Thompson 79), McGeady, Lambert, Pearson, Wallace, Sylla, Juninho Paulista. Subs Not Used: Hedman, Lennon, Petrov, Varga. Goals: Sylla 2, Wallace 6, Balde 38, Lambert 45, McManus 48, Wallace 57, 85, McGeady 90. Falkirk: Hill, Lawrie, James, Campbell (Hughes 70), McPherson, O'Neil, Nicholls (McAnespie 72), Latapy (Moutinho 74), MacKenzie, Duffy, Thomson. Subs Not Used: Scally, Ferguson. Goals: Thomson 66. Attendance: 24,345 Referee: W Young

Mowbray's marauderscreate a Celtic blueprint
By Calum Philip
20 September 2004
Celtic are mortal after all. The champions dropped their first points of the
season in the Scottish Premier League at Easter Road yesterday, as they
found a feisty Hibernian side almost too hot to handle.
With the trauma of Barcelona not out of their system, Martin O'Neill's side
had to come back twice just to gain a draw in a torrid encounter that had
Tony Mowbray, the Hibernian manager, insisting this was a blueprint for
others to follow.
"I hope that this is an inspiration to the rest of the SPL," declared
Mowbray. "We have shown that we can get close to Celtic, and other teams
should not fear the Old Firm." Mowbray's team looked as if they were going
to inflict the first away defeat in the league upon Celtic in 17 months
after they went in front from Bobo Balde's own-goal after just eight
minutes, as the giant Celtic defender sliced a cross from Steven Whittaker
past his own keeper, David Marshall.
Celtic struggled to contain the Hibs forwards, Garry O'Connor and Derek
Riordan, and when they equalised it was against the run of play. A backpass
by Guillaume Beuzelin was pounced on by Juninho and his cutback was steered
in by Henri Camara.
However, Hibernian were back in front within two minutes. Riordan combined
with David Murphy for the latter to race into Celtic's box and sweep a firm
shot past Marshall for his first goal for the Edinburgh club.
Seconds before the interval, a sublime backheel by Alan Thompson released
Juninho whose low cross was stabbed in by the lurking John Hartson. Celtic
camped in Hibernian's territory in the second half but other than a bad miss
by Camara, they gave the champions no encouragement to find a winner.
Goals: Balde og (8) 1-0; Camara (33) 1-1; Murphy (35) 2-1; Hartson (45) 2-2.
Hibernian (4-4-2): Si Brown; Whittaker, Caldwell, Murray, Murphy; Sc Brown
(Dobbie, 12, Fletcher, 82), Beuzelin, Glass, Shiels (Shields, 86); O'Connor,
Riordan. Substitutes not used: Brown, Venus, McCluskey, Notman.
Celtic (3-5-2): Marshall; Varga, Balde, Valgaeren; Petrov, Lennon, Sutton
(Agathe, 58), Juninho (Pearson, 71), Thompson; Camara, Hartson. Substitutes
not used: Hedman, Laursen, Wallace, McGeady, Cuthbert.
Referee: M McCurry.
Attendance: 13,500.
Man of the match: Murray.
Booked : Hibernian: Murray. Celtic: Lennon, Varga.

Celtic spirit foiled by Barca brilliance

GLENN GIBBONS AT CELTIC PARK


Celtic 1
Sutton (59),

Barcelona 3
Deco (20), Giuly (78), Larsson (82)

Referee: M Merk (Ger). Attendance: 58,589

EUROPEAN football of this unbearable intensity and fluctuation of fortunes
should be a case of the League Against Cruel Sports. Having come back from a
first-half mauling in this Champions League with a saved penalty and an
equaliser from substitute Chris Sutton, Celtic were finally, and inevitably,
undone by Henrik Larsson.

The great Swede came off the bench to accept a late gift from his former
team-mate, Alan Thompson - a wayward header - and deliver the third of
Barcelona's goals soon after Ludovic Giuly's weak shot was deflected by
Jackie McNamara past the appallingly unlucky David Marshall.

It was a fate the young goalkeeper did not deserve, having earlier saved a
penalty from Ronaldinho that started the hope of a seemingly impossible
resurgence.

It would be stretching credibility to claim that Celtic deserved better from
a Group F opener in which they sustained defeat at home in Europe for the
first time in three years. No overview of a relentlessly demanding 90
minutes would permit any conclusion but the recognition of Barcelona's
class.

But, as the match unfolded during a hardly credible second half, even Frank
Rijkaard, the Barca coach, must have been squirming in his dug-out as Sutton
scored and Stilian Petrov followed up with a volley that forced Victor
Valdes into an exceptional save and Celtic suddenly had the appearance of a
dormant volcano ready once again to rumble.

Martin O'Neill had warned of the need for patience among his players and his
supporters on the basis that there would be periods in the game when "we
will have to play without the ball".

Even at his most pessimistic and alarmist, however, the Irishman could not
have anticipated the duration of those times in which the visitors would
hoard the ball, or the frightening effect to which they would put it to use,
during a first half of virtually unchallenged superiority in which they
could have established a three-goal lead.

This protracted possession was the result of the pace and fluency of the
visitors' movement and the wonderful technique employed in keeping the ball
among themselves. It was also these qualities that allowed them to steal it
back so quickly that Celtic, by and large, were unable to hold it long
enough to build the kind of momentum which, in the past, so many callers at
Parkhead have found to be irrepressible.

Indeed, by the time Deco scored the first goal, even the most frenzied and
irrational home supporter would have been ashamed of arguing that it was not
the very least the Catalan side deserved. Without the intervention of
Marshall in goal and some desperate blocking by Bobo Balde and Stan Varga -
as well as a little misfortune on the part of Barca - Celtic would have been
appreciably more damaged.

There would be, however, no relief at hand when Ronaldinho took possession
in his own half and sprang forward with such ground-devouring speed that
Neil Lennon, normally alert and reliable in these situations, figured
immediately that his only recourse would be to foul the Brazilian.

When he attempted it, his opponent was no longer there, having simply
swerved into space, leaving the little Irishman sitting on the grass, like a
man having a picnic. Ronaldinho burst forward, twisting and feinting as he
went, leaving Varga with a tortuous dilemma, as he saw Deco peel off to the
right.

Ronaldinho did not wait for the big defender to make a decision, but simply
rolled the ball into the path of Deco, who took the shot on the run and
exploded it behind Marshall from about 15 yards' range.

Giuly would have doubled the advantage shortly before the interval but for
the intervention of Balde, the towering defender having raced back to catch
the little Frenchman as the latter took a perfect through pass from Gerard
and carried the ball wide of Marshall. Balde's outstrecthed leg managed to d
eflect Giuly's shot - into what he believed to be an unprotected net - away
for a corner kick.

Even the announcement of the arrival of Chris Sutton at the start of the
second half - he replaced Juninho - was met with only muted applause, as if
the home crowd sensed that it would take more than one man to rescue the
floundering vessel that was Celtic at that moment.

The big Englishman showed that under-estimation of his extraordinary talents
is a serious mistake, producing a monumental performance that included the
equaliser soon after Marshall had performed his personal miracle in saving
Ronaldinho's penalty kick.

It was when Giuly was on the point of shooting that Jackie McNamara took the
striker from behind. Ronaldinho's conversion attempt was driven to the left
of Marshall, but the big goalkeeper made an extraordinary save, bringing his
right arm across to divert for a corner.

As if nourished by the moment, Celtic discovered a tempo and incisiveness
that had not been previously suspected. After Didier Agathe and Henri Camara
combined in midfield, the Senegalese attacker bolted down the right before
delivering a wicked knee-high cross. Sutton, showing exceptional ability as
a contortionist, snaked his right leg forward, hit the ball on the volley
with the outside of his foot and sent it away to the left of Valdes.

It was a transformation in Celtic's standing in the match and in their
entire attitude that could not have been imagined just a few minutes before.
Even allowing for the brilliance of Barca, O'Neill's team had been unusually
subdued, as if all the pre-match reports of their opponents' greatness had
had an intimidating effect.

The penalty save from Marshall and that strike from Sutton seemed to be the
agents through which they rediscovered the self-belief that has made them so
formidable at home in Europe's premier tournament.

But Giuly's rather fortunate second goal and Larsson's simple score -
Thompson's sloppy header allowed him to knock the ball over Marshall before
tapping it over the line - were agonising developments on a night in which
all the pre-match promise may be said to have been delivered.

Celtic: Marshall; Agathe, Balde, Varga, McNamara (Sylla 80); Petrov, Lennon,
Thompson; Juninho (Sutton 45); Hartson (Valgaeren 63), Camara. Subs not
used: Douglas, Pearson, Lambert, McGeady.

Barcelona: Valdes; Belletti, Puyol, Marquez (Oleguer 62), van Bronckhorst;
Deco, Gerard, Xavi; Giuly, Eto'o (Iniesta 74), Ronaldinho (Larsson 61). Subs
not used: Ruben, Sylvinho, Gabri, Navarro.

A late goal by midfielder Clarence Seedorf gave AC Milan a 1-0 win over
Shakhtar Donetsk in last night's other Champions League Group F match. The
2003 winners struggled to break down their Ukrainian opponents, despite
enjoying a one-man advantage for most of the second half, until Seedorf
fired home a loose ball from the edge of the area in the 84th minute.

Shakhtar dominated the first half but the balance swung after the
53rd-minute dismissal of Shakhtar midfielder Darijo Srna for a second
bookable offence, but the home side hung on until Seedorf snatched all three
points for the visitors.

McGeady produces sparkling debut as Celtic are held
Heart of Midlothian 1 Celtic 1
By Calum Philip
26 April 2004


Aiden McGeady announced his arrival on the big stage yesterday by
hoisting Celtic to their century of Scottish Premier League goals as
they earned a draw at Tynecastle. McGeady scored on his debut, barely
days after celebrating his 18th birthday.

The Bhoys youngster has been carefully groomed for this appearance for
some time, admitted Martin O'Neill, the Celtic manager, after this
pulsating encounter and he did not disappoint with an eye-catching
volley for the champions.

O'Neill's team have already sewn up the title, six games early, but
there was nothing about this impassioned game that hinted at an
end-of-season affair. Indeed, when Mark de Vries snatched an equaliser
for Hearts after coming off the bench, that merely sent Tynecastle into
a fervour as the Edinburgh club chased the winner that would have
secured their place in the Uefa Cup again next season.

"I was delighted with Aiden's debut and his goal was wonderful," said
O'Neill. "He has got wonderful ability and that is why we have had him
training with us for some time and travelling with the side to Europe -
this was the right time to bring him in.

"He didn't have too much time to think about it but he hit it
brilliantly so he's delighted and absolutely thrilled to bits," O'Neill
added. "He tried a clever trick on the far side which said 'Ronaldinho
beware'. It certainly had the fans gasping."

McGeady made his mark after 17 minutes, peeling off at the back post to
meet a free-kick from Stilian Petrov - earned after McGeady had lured
Alan Maybury into a foul - and then clubbing a perfect drop volley with
his right foot, in off Craig Gordon's post.

Andy Kirk could have equalised just after the half-hour when he beat the
offside trap and raced clear, however the Celtic goalkeeper David
Marshall defied the striker's initial shot and Kirk lashed the rebound
over the bar.

McGeady could have helped Henrik Larsson add another to Celtic's lead
with a sublime piece of skill, but Gordon cut out the threat and later
Andy Webster was booked for cutting the teenager down.

However, Hearts' introduction of De Vries paid dividends when he
equalised in the 73rd minute. The towering Dutchman pounced when Johan
Mjallby missed Scott Severin's cross and thumped in an equally
spectacular volley of his own.

Hearts launched a furious assault for the winner and were only denied
when Marshall made a wonderful save from De Vries in stoppage time,
throwing himself to dive and keep out the striker's long-range shot. "We
feel we can take points off Celtic any time we meet the now," said Craig
Levein, the Hearts manager.

However, some of the shine was taken of the day for many Hearts
supporters when the chief executive, Chris Robinson, confirmed the club
were still prepared to leave Tynecastle. "It is looking increasingly
likely that we will stay at Tynecastle for another year," Robinson said.
"Unfortunately we have no hope of staying here. We have a number of
options to look at in the future but Tynecastle is no option."

Goals: McGeady (17) 0-1; De Vries (74) 1-1.

Hearts (3-5-2): Gordon; Pressley, Webster, Severin; Neilson, Stamp
(Hamill, 26), Hartley, Kisnorbo (De Vries, 56), Maybury; McKenna, Kirk
(Weir, 79). Substitutes not used: Moilanen (gk), MacFarlane.

Celtic (3-5-2): Marshall; Varga, Balde, Mjallby; Agathe, Lennon, Petrov,
Miller, Smith; Larsson, McGeady (Beattie, 68). Substitutes not used:
McGovern (gk), Sylla, Lambert, McManus.

Referee: K Clark (Scotland).

Booking: Hearts: Webster.

Man of the match: Lennon.

Attendance: 12,112.

Petrov seals Celtic's party in the park

GLENN GIBBONS AT RUGBY PARK


Kilmarnock 0
Celtic 1 Petrov (32)

THE long-standing inevitability of Celtic's championship triumph - like the
weeks preceding the cessation of hostilities in a war long since won, but
without the dread - was no deterrent to thousands of supporters who
celebrated as though it had arrived with the suddenness of a lottery
jackpot.

"Here for the party, we're only here for the party," they chanted some time
before kick-off. Those with an intuitive understanding of these matters will
have recognised, even that early, that the jamboree was not about to be
ruined by the weather. Titles are not clinched in the kind of grey, wet,
spirit-snuffing conditions which prevailed as the green-and-white multitudes
arrived at Rugby Park.

They tend to be marked by brightness, colour and warmth, largely because
they are normally not secured while April is unloading her proverbial
showers, but during the much more welcoming month of May. But, when the
clouds drifted apart and the stadium was doused in sunshine in the minutes
before the start, there was an unmistakable quickening of the tempo in the
songs, a syncopation entirely in keeping with the sense of excitement and
anticipation in the stands behind the goals.

That the match and, consequently, the Premierleague trophy itself should
ultimately be won by a comparatively jaded, unusually uninspiring
performance by the new champions was hardly a surprise, given the rigours of
the schedule Martin O'Neill's players have faced at home and abroad in the
past few weeks. This was their 16th match in three competitions in the past
56 days.

During that period, there have been unmissable signs of wear and tear among
those who have played the vast majority of the games. Henrik Larsson, for
example, will doubtless take advantage of the five weeks between now and the
Tennent's Scottish Cup final on 22 May to renew his energy in preparation
for a glorious farewell to the club he has helped to four championships
since his arrival from Feyenoord in 1997.

The incomparable Swede, at times appearing to be playing in calipers
compared to his normal sprightliness, on this occasion left the glory to his
partner for the day, Stilian Petrov. The absence of Chris Sutton, John
Hartson and even Shaun Maloney made this a largely unrehearsed act, but
Larsson and Petrov, once again summoning the effort required to carry their
colleagues over the finishing line, still combined to provide the only goal
of the match.

By the time the sky, shortly before half-time, once again turned a darker
hue, Celtic were already ahead and, despite the occasional alarm the
Kilmarnock forwards had raised in the visiting defence, there was no doubt
that the visitors' advantage was overdue.

In the preceding 31 minutes, there had been a composure and assurance about
them, underpinned by physical power and frequently inventive foraging in
forward areas, which testified to the difference in the current status of
the respective teams.

O'Neill had solved his pre-match quandary - whether to give most of his
regulars a much-needed rest or ask them for one last effort in order to
secure the title with six matches to spare - with a compromise of sorts,
involving both personnel and formation.

While goalkeeper David Marshall, defender Joos Valgaeren and midfielder Liam
Miller were omitted, their replacements, Robert Douglas, Johan Mjallby and
Paul Lambert, could hardly be described as novices. It was a declaration by
the Parkhead manager that, while he was prepared to make changes, the great
occasion would not be left in the hands of apprentices.

He also reverted to a three-man defence, with Didier Agathe on the right of
a middle five, Stephen Pearson on the left, and Jackie McNamara moving
forward from defence into midfield. The return of Lambert, in particular,
gave Celtic a solid base in that department from which they could begin the
forward surges that would trouble Colin Meldrum and his work-mates in
defence.

The goalkeeper should, in fact, have been beaten as early as the ninth
minute, when Neil Lennon, from the left, played the ball across to McNamara
and his attempt at a shot was miscued straight towards Stan Varga. The big
defender, who had remained upfield for the corner-kick that had started the
drama, was utterly without a challenge as he turned quickly and prodded the
ball off the base of the goalkeeper's left-hand post.

There was a similar moment of dread for the home fans later, when Petrov
played a one-two with McNamara which gave him a golden opportunity from
close range, but Meldrum blocked the shot out to Pearson. With the
goalkeeper beaten, the former Motherwell player's powerful shot was stopped
on the line this time by Garry Hay.

These incidents left nobody surprised when Petrov did score, but not before
the home fans and the Kilmarnock management team had been inflamed by
referee Mike McCurry's decision to award Celtic a free-kick as Kris Boyd
scored the goal that would have put the Ayrshire side in front.

A good move had left Boyd clear on the left, and his poor centre appeared to
be covered by Bobo Balde. But the big defender failed to control the ball
and, when it bounced back towards Boyd, the striker sent a
beautifully-controlled right-foot drive into the far corner. The referee
judged that Balde had been fouled by Eric Skora, a decision that appeared
especially fortunate for Celtic and extremely hard on Kilmarnock.

There was, however, no controversy about Petrov's opener. The Bulgarian
began his run into the box from the left the moment Lennon took a throw-in
to Larsson from nearby. The Swede glanced the header into the path of his
partner in attack and Petrov carried the ball to within six yards of the
target before driving it low past Meldrum.

But the combination of physical and mental fatigue and the onset of the kind
of anxieties that can afflict even the most confident of teams when the
prize is within touching distance ensured that Celtic would come nowhere
near to emulating the irresistible form that had brought them a 5-0 victory
in the same fixture last November.

Indeed, there were times in the second half when there appeared to be a
possibility of Kilmarnock denying the Parkhead side their day of days.
Pearson, who had a generally unproductive afternoon, managed to interfere
with Mjallby's attempt to make a clearing header, the mix-up allowing Danny
Invincibile a clear look at goal. The striker's right-foot drive, from the
right side of the area, was pulled just wide of the far post.

That occurred so soon after the interval - in the 54th minute - that it was
easy to detect among the crowd the uneasiness of men who have backed a
winner and then have to go through the discomfort of a lengthy stewards'
enquiry.

But there would be, at the back of every anxious mind, the comforting
realisation that Celtic under O'Neill are not given to a readiness to
capitulate or a collapse of morale. With Neil Lennon once again defying the
unfathomable booing of opposing fans that accompanies his every move with a
performance of smothering authority in midfield, scary moments for Douglas,
Balde, Varga and Mjallby were all but eradicated.

Remembering their overall strength through the past four years, it seems
strange to reflect that this is Celtic's first trophy since the championship
of 2002. No triumph could have been more convincingly achieved.

Kilmarnock: Meldrum; Lilley, Greer, Dindeleux, Hay; Fowler, Locke, Skora,
Murray (Dargo 83); Invincibile (McSwegan 87), Boyd. Subs not used: Smith,
McDonald, Dodds.

Celtic: Douglas; Mjallby, Balde, Varga; Agathe (Miller 71), Lambert, Lennon,
McNamara, Pearson; Petrov, Larsson. Subs not used: Marshall, Sylla, Wallace,
Smith.

Referee: M McCurry.
Attendance: 14,516

Sutton seals Hampden return

Striker a doubt for Villarreal after limping off with groin problem

Graham Clark at Hampden Park
Monday April 12, 2004
The Guardian

This competition may be third in Celtic's list of priorities but their appetite for success in the tournament, as well as the Uefa Cup and the Premierleague, remains undiminished.

With a European return against Villarreal on Wednesday and only three days after the first-leg draw, Livingston arrived hoping to catch the Parkhead team with one eye on the more prestigious prize.

It was no more than wishful thinking, however, for Martin O'Neill's team displayed all of the hunger, desire and commitment they have shown through a memorable season.

Those qualities, together with an inherent ability, have kept Celtic on course for a wonderful treble although Villarreal will offer a sterner test than the Almondvale side. Celtic simply strolled into a Cup final meeting with either Inverness Caley or Dunfermline, who drew 1-1 on Saturday and replay at Pittodrie a week tomorrow.

Yesterday's was a contest for little more than 30 minutes although had Derek Lilley taken a fine chance after four minutes, when he was denied by goalkeeper David Marshall, it might have turned out differently. One suspects not, though.

Celtic gradually stepped up through the gears and although the substitute Colin McMenamin offered Livingston some hope with a goal late on, the tie had been decided long before.

Goals from Chris Sutton after 36 and 64 minutes, both set up by the combination of Stilian Petrov and Henrik Larsson, came either side of a goal from the Swede himself, when he took full advantage of a desperate mix-up between Emmanuel Dorado and Oscar Rubio to get the crucial second.

That effectively ended the affair although McMenamin's header from a cross by Jon Paul McGovern, and a battling last 12 minutes, gave Livingston their credibility back.

The CIS Insurance Cup winners gave their all but as bigger names have found this season, that is not always enough against a Celtic team who, having secured a return to Hampden on May 22, can now turn their attentions to more pressing matters.

And on the subject of Uefa Cup business, O'Neill revealed an injury worry over Chris Sutton ahead of today's trip to Spain. He was replaced by Craig Beattie and now faces a race against time to get fit. "It is a concern and at the moment Sutton's groin is sore," admitted O'Neill. "He will want to play, of course, but there isn't much time ahead of Wednesday and we may have a problem there."

Just such an injury is precisely what O'Neill hoped to avoid, for he is already without alternatives because of long-term problems with John Hartson and Shaun Maloney. In addition the defender John Kennedy is also out and there is a doubt over Jackie McNamara, while Alan Thompson is suspended.

"We have to get on with it regardless. Some of our young players will join us on Tuesday after playing in an Under-21 match and the pluses for us from this game, aside from reaching the final which was always the objective, is that others like Joos Valgaeren, Johan Mjallby, Liam Miller and Craig Beattie got a run."

All can now be expected to play a part at Villarreal as Celtic battle to make the semi-finals after last week's 1-1 draw.

Livingston's manager Davie Hay, meanwhile, accepted that yesterday's game was just too big a task for his team but he was concerned at the way his players conceded the first two goals. "They could have been avoided, especially the second, but we put in a credible performance," he said.

Man of the match: Stephen Pearson (Celtic)

Slick Thompson makes extra man count for Celtic

Kevin McCarra at Celtic Park
Friday March 11, 2004
The Guardian

Celtic hold a one-goal advantage in this Uefa Cup fourth round tie after enjoying the benefit of an extra man. On an unruly night their goalkeeper Rab Douglas was sent off for fighting with Thiago Motta at the interval and the Barcelona forward Javier Saviola received a red card in a match that forgot the compassion that had preceded it.

Uefa had resisted Barcelona's plea that the match be postponed because of the atrocities in Madrid, so respects were paid not merely with a minute's silence but also with the crowd's even more moving rendition of You'll Never Walk Alone as an expression of solidarity.

The game itself was subdued until competitive instincts resurfaced, and the first distraction from the inevitably superior technique of the visitors came when Celtic's Didier Agathe dribbled past Motta with unlikely ease. His cross created no trouble and that incident summed up the difficulties that confronted the Scottish champions.

With John Hartson ruled out till next season, the home manager Martin O'Neill could hardly afford the failure of Chris Sutton to recover from an ankle injury. Celtic's style depends on a target man whose strength is the focal point of attacks. Here O'Neill had to select Craig Beattie, a talented youngster but not yet ready to dominate opponents.

So reduced in numbers is the squad at present that O'Neill did not name his full quota of substitutes. It was clearly going to be a night for Celtic to scavenge as they sought to extend a record of 73 matches unbeaten at home stretching back to August 2001.

To their credit, they did come to life spasmodically before the interval, with Bobo Balde, the massive and occasionally unwieldy centre-half, rousing the supporters.

Celtic might have had the lead two minutes before the interval. Beattie tucked the ball in from the right and Stilian Petrov rolled it back into the well-time run of Alan Thompson. He was clear, but did not make good contact.

Celtic fans could hardly sigh with exasperation, though. Barcelona, with their three-man attack spread across the pitch, tugged the defence and opened up space. Saviola played a one-two with Ronaldinho and hacked wide before protesting he had been fouled.

There was no such excuse for Ronaldinho as he skewed his effort wide when, set up by Saviola, he looked sure to score. Celtic dreamed of winning, but were often busy surviving and a challenge awaited them with the red cards for Douglas and Motta.

The goalkeeper's understudy David Marshall saw a Saviola finish fly marginally beyond the post in the 47th minute, but the Argentinian was to be sent off moments later for a wild, inexplicable hack at Thompson. Celtic had a numerical advantage and took the lead in the 59th minute.

Henrik Larsson leapt prodigiously to a Petrov cross and headed down for Thompson to finish with an expert half-volley. On an overwrought night, Barcelona soon had to replace Michael Reiziger, who was on the verge of being dismissed.

Lonely Larsson leaves Rangers to rue lack of home help

Graham Clark at Celtic Park
Monday March 8, 2004
The Guardian

The winter of discontent has turned into a spring of despair and disillusionment for Rangers, thanks largely to Celtic's contrasting progress from strength to strength. Martin O'Neill's team won a poor quarter-final yesterday to underline their ambitions of a treble, and now only the Uefa Cup appears in doubt.

Nothing, it seems, can stop Celtic in Scotland, but Barcelona will represent a rather more difficult hurdle when they visit Parkhead in the last 16 of the Uefa Cup on Thursday. Despite this merited victory, O'Neill has his fingers crossed that Chris Sutton will be available after injury, the English striker having been badly missed here as Henrik Larsson ploughed a lone furrow for most of a turgid afternoon.

Depleted as they were, Celtic still carved out more opportunities and when one fell to Larsson after 53 minutes he made no mistake. A corner from Alan Thompson, being watched by the England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson, a header from Bobo Balde, a shot from Stephen Pearson blocked by Stefan Klos and there was the Swede to swivel and fire the ball home.

That 28th goal of a final memorable season for Larsson confirmed match No73 at Parkhead without defeat for Celtic and put them into the last four along with Dunfermline, Inverness Caley Thistle - who had famously won 3-1 at Parkhead against John Barnes's Celtic team in February 2000 and repeated the feat, 1-0 at home, against O'Neill's in last year's quarter-final - and either Livingston or Aberdeen.

Rangers, meanwhile, are left to rue a season bereft of silverware, but their manager Alex McLeish claimed he could see "light at the end of the tunnel" and said that but for a series of injuries the season would have been better.

"We haven't been able to gain momentum," he said. "I'm not saying we would be top of the league or in the next round of the cup, but we would have been better.

"Newcomers like Gavin Rae and Stevie Thompson, along with Stephen Hughes, have had interrupted seasons through injury and some of the foreign players have struggled to get to grips with the culture here. Although we are disappointed, I can take some positives from today."

McLeish's mention of all things Scottish was no coincidence. He wants more home-bred players in his squad and of his foreign legion it now seems Nuno Capucho, Emerson, Michael Mols, Paolo Vanoli and Christian Nerlinger will be going in the summer, though he said of Celtic: "Their team has been together effectively for three or four years and that shows. They are a powerful side."

There was precious little else to enthuse over as the two teams struggled to get to grips with the occasion. Celtic certainly did that better and created more. Stanislav Varga, Thompson, Larsson and the substitute Craig Beattie had decent efforts whereas Rangers' only genuine chance came in the dying seconds, when Rae shot wide, and their only effort that troubled Rab Douglas was a minute or two earlier, when the goalkeeper held Michael Ball's effort.

So the champions-elect march on. Their domestic supremacy this season is down to a continuity of selection which Rangers have never enjoyed. Douglas in goal, Balde and Varga in the middle of the defence, Lennon and Petrov in midfield and of course Larsson and usually Sutton up front have given them a steely core.

With Didier Agathe and Thompson supplying width, it has been a consistent and successful formula for O'Neill, who occasionally tinkers with systems - as he had to in this match - but seldom unnecessarily disturbs the personnel.

"We have a busy and tough schedule and I thought that showed even in the first half of this match when we were a bit laboured after our midweek European tie in Teplice," O'Neill said. "But it was a very important win which I felt we deserved, and now we can look forward to Barca."

He would, however, dearly love to have Sutton available for Thursday. "He's doubtful and if the game was now he couldn't play," he admitted. "He's a big player for us because he's having a wonderful season, but it's impossible to know at this stage if he'll be ready."

With John Hartson and Shaun Maloney also injured, O'Neill is down to the bare bones in attack but his side are so well organised that they can still expect to unsettle Frank Rijkaard's team in Thursday's first leg.

Man of the match: Neil Lennon (Celtic)

Sutton injury adds to Celtic list

Graham Clark at the Na Stinadlech Stadium
Thursday March 4, 2004
The Guardian

Celtic go into today's fourth-round draw but their passage was earned the hard way yesterday as Teplice won on the night but failed on aggregate.

Progress came at a cost, with the manager Martin O'Neill worried about an injury to Chris Sutton, who limped off in the 71st minute, in the wake of long-term problems with his other strikers John Hartson and Shaun Maloney.

"Sutton went over on an ankle and it's still sore. We will see when we get back to Glasgow whether or not he will need an x-ray," said O'Neill.

"There is also concern over Jackie McNamara, who has a shin injury, and both are problems we could have done without ahead of our Scottish tie against Rangers on Sunday."

The Czech club surprised Celtic with a much more spirited display than in Glasgow last week and Jiri Masek's first-half goal ended O'Neill's plans to give one or two of his players a rest before Sunday.

A power cut that delayed kick-off for 13 minutes coincided with a fierce snowstorm. This seemed to unnerve Celtic and John Kennedy was booked for a foul on Emil Rilke after only two minutes.

A trademark Alan Thompson free-kick held by Tomas Postulka settled Celtic and for a long spell they dictated the pace of the game. Paul Lambert, in for the suspended Neil Lennon, appeared to pick up every loose ball in the middle.

A mistake by Tomas Kuchar almost allowed Henrik Larsson in and a fierce free-kick from the Swede tested Postulka.

But against the run of play Teplice struck after 35th minutes, although the goal owed as much to Stanislav Varga's poor headed clearance from Michal Dolezal's long ball as it did to any incisive attacking. The defender also fell and he was still picking himself up Masek moved on to the ball, took a touch and sent a blistering shot past Douglas high into the net.

The interval allowed Celtic to regroup and Lambert went close shortly. Teplice occasionally threatened but seldom with the same conviction they had shown previously. But Karel Rada headed a Kuchar corner just over and Kennedy alertly cleared from Masek.

With 11 minutes left Celtic should have equalised but Petrov and Larsson were thwarted by Postulka.

Livvy put to the sword
Alison McConnell    

Sunday, 29th February 2004.
Scottish Premierleague,
Celtic Park.

CELTIC……………5 (Pearson 13, Sutton 37, Thompson 49, 79 pen, Larsson 55)
LIVINGSTON……..1 (Lilley 42)

Leap years come just once every four years, but groundhog day can be
seen on match days down at Celtic Park.

Livingston became the latest in a long line of challengers to discover
the potency of Martin O'Neill's side as a 25th successive league
victory was celebrated courtesy of a comfortable 5 -1 win.

It is a result that stretches the chasm at the top of the table to 16
points and takes Celtic's unbeaten run on their own turf to 72 games.
It's quite a record.

O'Neill's side could afford to allow some moments of slackness to
creep into their play without relinquishing their grip on the game,
and although Livingston had pegged back the lead to 2-1 by the
interval, Celtic simply upped the pace and quickly established an
unassailable advantage.

By the time Alan Thompson and Henrik Larsson had added to the opening
half strikes from Stephen Pearson and Chris Sutton, the game was won
and the bulk of the second period was played at a pedestrian pace as
Celtic sought for further openings. Even Neil Lennon almost got in on
the act after he was teed up by Sutton, but his attempt was palmed
away by Roddy McKenzie in the Livingston goal.

O'Neill could afford to hook Larsson and Sutton midway through the
second period with one eye on the coming week's fixtures and through
on Craig Beattie and Momo Sylla. Beattie was felled by Marvin Andrews
with just over ten minutes to go in the box, allowing Thompson to net
his second and Celtic's fifth from the spot when he dispatched a cool
penalty beyond McKenzie.

The Northern Irish midfielder returned to the side after his enforced
absence through suspension on Thursday evening while John Kennedy also
started at the expense of Jackie McNamara who was carrying a knock.

Pearson gave Celtic the ideal platform to add to their burgeoning
tally of successive league victories when he opened the scoring after
just 13 minutes when he converted Stan Varga's pass across the face of
the Livingston goal. After the opener, however, it all went a bit flat
and Livingston were not averse to probing for openings in the Hoops
defence.

Rab Douglas was twice forced into saves, the first a looping header
from David Lilley that the Scotland internationalist tipped over the
bar and the second stop more impressive when he got down sharply to
his right to suffocate a close range shot, again from Lilley after
Stuart Lovell's cut-back.

By the time news filtered through from Tannadice that Rangers were
falling further behind Martin O'Neill's side, it gave the supporters
cause to raise their voice, and within minutes that energy had
translated itself onto the park where Sutton added the second.

Alan Thompson's free-kick was headed on by Larsson and the Englishman
stole ahead of Oscar Rubio to knock the ball low into the net.

Livingston succeeded in pulling one back before the break when Burton
O'Brien's long pass in between the Hoops defence was met by Lovell who
drilled home a low foot shot that escaped the attentions of a late
lunge from Kennedy.

Lennon got involved in a tussle with Jamie McAllister that ended with
the former's name in the book, much to his irritation. In truth,
however, having had a little kick at the player Lennon could really
have no complaints about the booking.

Four minutes after the break Celtic stretched in front again when
Varga supplied Sutton and the striker's neat back-heel was flicked
into the path of Thompson who sunk a low drive well beyond the reach
of Roddy Mckenzie in the Livingston goal.

Livingston's afternoon became more miserable still when Larsson added
the fourth. McKenzie collected a pass-back and subsequently was
penalised with an indirect free-kick inside his own box. Petrov and
Thompson tapped the ball to one another before Larsson swung a shot
that nestled in the back of the net.

Thompson completed the rout from the spot to complete another fine day
at the office.

CELTIC (4-4-2): Douglas; Agathe, Kennedy, Balde, Varga (Valgaeren 74);
Petrov, Lennon, Pearson, Thompson; Larsson (Beattie 67), Sutton (Sylla
67). Subs: Marshall, Lambert.

LIVINGSTON (3-5-2): McKenzie; Andrew, Rubio (McMenamin 46), Dorado;
McNamee, Makel (McGovern 65), O'Brien, Lovell, McAllister; Lilley,
Pasquinelli. Subs: Main, McLaughlin, Brittain.

MAN OF THE MATCH: Chris Sutton

Thompson shines again as Celtic clinch record

Partick Thistle 1 Celtic 4
By Calum Philip

23 February 2004

Celtic put another footnote into the record books yesterday, as Alan
Thompson and Chris Sutton made up for their inability to break into the
England set-up by securing a more lasting piece of fame.
The England manager, Sven Goran Eriksson, will apparently be at Parkhead on
Thursday night to watch the pair - whom he overlooked last week for the
squad that played Portugal - in action in the Uefa Cup third-round tie
against FK Teplice, but neither Sutton nor Thompson is holding his breath.
Sutton scored twice as Celtic chalked up their 24th successive win in the
Scottish Premier League this season against Partick- overhauling the record
set by Morton in 1964 - to establish a benchmark that has never been
bettered in European f