| Match Pictures | Matches: 1998 – 1999 | 1998-1999 Pictures |
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Trivia
- Rieper (ankle) and Stubbs (groin) were both out with injuries. Riseth was ineligible. Mahe came back into the squad and McNamara and O’Donnell were fit to play. Brian Vaugh was included in the first team squad for the first time. Annoni was said to have ‘flu but it was more likely that he was dropped after demanding a transfer and going to the papers.
- Tom Boyd was sent off.
- Jonny Gould saved a penalty from Bartlett.
Review
A nightmare goalkeeping night for Gould – which gave rise to the amazing Flying Boyd, a handball, straight red and a penalty – which Gould saved, only to be lobbed late in the game for Zurich’s equalizer.
Teams
Celtic: Gould, Boyd , Mahe, McNamara, Larsson, Burley , Brattbakk (Jackson 74), O'Donnell, Donnelly, Lambert, McKinlay.
Subs Not Used: Hannah, Kerr, McLaughlin, McBride, Burchill, Vaugh.
Goals: Brattbakk 23.
FC Zurich: Pascolo, Hodel, Santanna (Castillo 84), Bartlett, Lima, Nixon (Wiederkeher 45), Signore, Chassot, Fischer, Di Jorio, Taroni.
Subs Not Used: Huber, Djordjevic, Iodice, Tronbini.
Goals: Fischer 75.
Booked: Burley (Celtic) Di Jorio, Signore (FC Zurich)
Sent Off: Boyd (45).
Ref: V Melnichuk (Ukraine).
Att: 44,121
Articles
- Match Report
Freak goal robs Celtic of victory
The Scotsman 21/10/1998
Celtic1 Brattbakk (25)
FC Zurich1 Fischer (75)
SOMETIMES a draw can be as good as a victory, even at home in Europe. Such conundrums and contradictions reflect a bizarre night of UEFA Cup football at Parkhead last night in a game which Celtic could have won convincingly if they had seized their first-half chances.
Instead they will now face a Swiss mountain of a task in the return leg in a fortnight without the banned Craig Burley and the Celtic captain, Tom Boyd, but the Scottish champions must know this morning that last night could have been a lot worse: they could already be all but out of the UEFA Cup, just as Croatia Zagreb dispatched them from the Champions League in the balmy days of August.
Although FC Zurich do not enjoy the same pedigree as the Croats, they could have humbled Celtic when, at 1-0 after a Harald Brattbakk goal, Boyd was dismissed on the verge of half-time and a penalty awarded after he stopped a certain goal by handling on the line.
Jonathan Gould then finished what Boyd had started by saving Cesare Santanna's powerful kick and ten-man Celtic then held on for much of the remains of the game until a cross from the Swiss side's captain, Urs Fischer, just 15 minutes from the end drifted over the stranded goalkeeper to deny the hosts a win and give the cow bells carried by the small flock of Swiss fans a licence to clang. The murmured jeers from the home crowd at the end of the breathless encounter did not give their players, who had given their all, due credit.
But perhaps that was a reflection of a game that Celtic could have won with the enigma that is Brattbakk squandering two other gilt-edged chances either side of his clinical finish, which takes his tally to three goals in three games.
That said, this fighting performance could yet prove a watershed in the troubled reign of Jozef Venglos. An already depleted defence battled manfully after the dismissal of Boyd, with Stephane Mahe outstanding as an emergency centre-back in a team missing the injured Marc Rieper and Alan Stubbs and flu victim Enrico Annoni.
Without the indisposed triumverate of centre-backs, Mahe had been moved into the middle to accompany Boyd, and Jackie McNamara reappeared for the first time since Celtic's humbling in Zagreb back in September. With Vidar Riseth ineligible, there were four changes from the team that drew with Dunfermline on Saturday but it was the reshuffling at the back which was most immediately apparent.
Within ten seconds of the kick-off, sloppy passing by both Mahe – who was able to play in Europe during a domestic ban -and Tosh McKinlay presented striker Shaun Bartlett with a clear run at Gould, which he sidefooted tamely wide.
It took Celtic six minutes to create their first chance. Phil O'Donnell broke free down the left and rolled a low cross to Brattbakk, but the Norwegian's shot was blocked by the legs of the Zurich goalkeeper, Marco Pascolo.
Brattbakk was not to give the goalkeeper, on loan from Nottingham Forest, a chance after 25 minutes. Following a short free kick worked by McNamara and the increasingly influential Burley, the right-back whipped in a cross which deflected off a defender and looped into the path of Brattbakk, who finished with a clean left-footed volley.
There was a surreal moment after the goal with Brattbakk motionless and alone in the goalmouth. It was hard to tell who was more surprised by the clinical nature of the goal – Brattbakk, his team-mates or an incredulous crowd.
The striker was to resume normal service just before half-time with a weak header to Pascolo when free on the six-yard line, but by then Zurich had got back into the contest.
On the half-hour, McNamara scrambled a Daniel Tarone shot from the line after Gould had half blocked his shot and the goalkeeper was then to shovel aside a header from Francisco Lima from a corner.
It was a warning that Celtic failed to heed. A minute before the break, Gould advanced from his box to try to stem a Zurich attack but succeeded in only colliding with Mahe, leaving Santanna with an open goal. His shot was destined for the net before a retreating Boyd punched it clear.
Boyd was making his way from the field, to a standing ovation, before the Ukrainian referee, Vasily Melnichuk, had brandished the red card. Boyd had arguably been the team's best player.
His actions were partly vindicated by Gould moments later, who redeemed himself by blocking Santanna's fiercely driven penalty. The referee had blown for half-time before the Brazilian scooped his follow-up over the bar.
At the break, Zurich replaced Jerren Nixon, who had faded, with Andre Wiederkehr, while Burley slotted into the back four and Larsson withdrew into midfield.
With Celtic's cutting edge further blunted by the reshuffle, it was all hands to the pump with temporary relief brought only by the occasional counterattack. Burley received his second booking in Europe this season – he was also cautioned in Zagreb – which will rule him out of the second leg. Bartlett again wasted a chance to beat Gould, but Larsson and Simon Donnelly had chances for a winner before the Fischer cross from the left drifted over Gould and into the corner. It was cruel on Celtic. At the end of 90 exhausting minutes, a draw was a creditable result for Celtic, but the effort must be turned into a win in Zurich in a fortnight. On the evidence of last night, and with 11 fit men, it is not impossible
- Manager Interview
Dr Jo Venglos, post match
“Feelings are feelings and results are results…..”
“It was a game of two different faces and both halves of the match produced very different circumstances.
“In the first half we had good combination play with middle distance passing to create good goal scoring opportunities.
“But the last minute changed all that with Tom Boyd being sent off and we had to alter things after the break.
“In the second 45 we tried to control the game and then THAT goal came, then there was not enough time to go on again.
“There was always danger and it was a very typical cup game in the sense that it was unpredictable.
“But that is just the first half of the tie over and we shall see what happens in two weeks time.
“We are able to take a result in Switzerland even though they are a good and strong opposition and 1-1 here is a good result for them.
“But we still have players with plenty of international experience who will always go out to win.”
Pictures
Stats
| Celtic | FC Zurich | |
| Bookings | 1 | 2 |
| Red Cards | 1 | 0 |
| Fouls | 10 | 13 |
| Shots on Target | 4 | 4 |
| Corners | 5 | 2 |
| Offside | 4 | 5 |