| Match Pictures | Matches: 1999 – 2000 | 1999-2000 Pictures |
Trivia
- Andy McCondichie, ex-Celtic fringe goalkeeper was on trial at Clydebank.
- The Fergus McCann share issue went ahead closing on Friday 15/10. Shareholders and season ticket holders paid more than £21million for more than seven and a half million of the ten million shares on offer meaning just over 63% of shares were held by individual supporters. Dermot Desmond would become the single biggest investor with 20%. Fergus McCann admitted that the level of take up was less than he expected but that the level per supporter was more than had been expected. Over 3,000 supporters used the assisted buy interest-free payment scheme
- Petrov dropped to the bench and Wieghorst & Petta dropped out of the squad.
Review
Hatricks for Viduka and Larsson with Berkovic getting the opener before going off with a thigh strain. Aberdeen were indeed woeful.
Teams
Celtic:
Gould, Riseth, Stubbs, Tebily, McNamara, Burley (Mjallby 62), Berkovic (Blinker 32), Moravcik, Lambert, Larsson (Burchill 78), Viduka.
Non Used Subs: Kharine, Petrov.
Goals: Berkovic 16, Larsson 40, 43, Viduka 61, 64, Larsson 73,Viduka 88.
Aberdeen:
Preece, Perry, Anderson, Solberg, Dow, Young, Buchan, Mayer, Gillies (Bett 66), Jess (McAllister 52),Winters (Hamilton 69).
Non Used Subs: Leighton, Lilley.
Bookings: Young (Aberdeen)
Referee: Stuart Dougal (Scotland).
Attendance: 60,033
Highlights Goals
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Stats
| Celtic | Aberdeen | |
| Bookings | 0 | 1 |
| Red Cards | 0 | 0 |
| Fouls | 8 | 7 |
| Shots on Target | 25 | 9 |
| Corners | 11 | 2 |
| Offside | 2 | 0 |
Articles
DON IN THE DUMPSScotland on Sunday 17/10/1999
By GRAHAM SPIERS AT PARKHEAD
Celtic7 Aberdeen0
CELTIC gave Aberdeen the swording of their life, even amid the pillage and rape that has gone on during this shambolic term of Ebbe Skovdahl's reign at Pittodrie. The only aspect more marked than Celtic's freedom of instinct and thought was the painful manner in which Aberdeen were made to capitulate, watching in terror as Celtic speared past them in droves of marauding packs.
In a perverse way, because this was such a ridiculous match, it wasn't always so appealing. For Aberdeen, though, this was their worst defeat since going down 8-0 to Celtic in 1965, itself the biggest calumny in the club's history. Skovdahl, standing on the touchline trying to take all of this in, must have had the strangest sensation of almost being a bystander at his own funeral. Certainly, if these Aberdeen maulings continue in such a welter, Stewart Milne, the club chairman, will have no option but to have Skovdahl taken out in a box. No wins in nine league games is nothing to shout about. But 29 goals against and only three scored is the stuff of the game's hangman.
It is becoming awkward having to confront this genial Dane after traumas such as this, there being not a lot that can be asked, and not much more than can be answered. Despite a horrific toll of games and beatings that must surely be taxing him, yesterday he did at least manage to pierce the interrogation with a mild shaft of humour.
The hapless Aberdeen goalkeeper, David Preece, it transpired, had taken a knock on the head late on – a handy way, after conceding seven goals, to empty the memory bank. In non-urgent circumstances, Preece was taken off to hospital last night, claiming he couldn't remember a thing. "I said to him, 'I wish I were you,'" Skovdahl said later.
Celtic were an odd side, actually stuttering and stalling before this rout unfolded, but then buoyantly charging at Aberdeen once it became obvious the opposition were there to be sacrificed. In Derek Young, Jamie Buchan and Ricky Gillies, the Dons had players who looked positively terrorised to be in the thick of this. Young, aged 20, was simply brushed aside throughout, and despite still being a player of promise, he looked as if he needed a severe cuddling from a busty aunt at the final whistle. The measure of Celtic's imperfection here was also the mark of Aberdeen's utter incompetence.
John Barnes, Celtic's coach, displayed an appealing honesty about this later. The relentlessness of his side's play still left something to be desired, most certainly the conviction that, whether in Europe or elsewhere, stiffer opposition than Aberdeen yesterday would not allow this sort of style to flourish. Some of Celtic's play had an almost gimmicky quality to it, played out by players finding themselves in vast acres of space, unhurried and unchallenged and indulging in what was often a parody of the game. Celtic were 3-0 up by half-time and six up before the 75th minute – an indication of Aberdeen's woeful attempts to compete. In English football, certainly, Barnes will rarely have seen teams being plundered like this.
One wondered what Tommy Burns, the former Celtic manager, who watched this from the press box, made of it. With the passage of time, Burns' tenure at Celtic has received a certain revisionist mauling, yet the memory and many of the statistics bear out a time of attractive football without some of yesterday's laboured accretions. Burns' Celtic certainly rarely passed themselves into the sort of fankles at the back which Barnes' team did here.
"At times we still gave the ball away sloppily," said Barnes later. "Better teams and better opposition would have made us pay for that."
Barnes' much-discussed tactics, with his galloping full-backs, and staggered midfield with two offensive and two defensive players, has certainly aroused intrigue, and there was a suspicion here that that intrigue is still shared by some of his players. The fact that a timorous, quaking Aberdeen were put to the sword couldn't disguise this. Before an avalanche of goals poured through a seeping Aberdeen defence, Celtic resembled a team trying to play in as many concentric circles as possible.
This match was also bad news for the young upstart, Mark Burchill, in that Mark Viduka and Henrik Larsson, both ahead of him in the strikers' queue, each notched a hat-trick. Larsson, scoring with his right foot, his left and his head, was a hungry executioner, latching onto Craig Burley's pass to open his account after 40 minutes, and then volleying Lubomir Moravcik's cross in the 44th minute to have two before the interval. Larsson's downward header from Moravcik's corner after 75 minutes allowed him to stick out his long tongue before being substituted to a rapturous reception.
Viduka, too, would not be outdone. His goals after 62, 65 and 81 minutes piled torture onto Aberdeen, a montage of poked-in efforts from around the six-yard line that Preece, even after making a fine save during Viduka's second, was helpless in trying to stop. Poor Preece had another nightmare but he did make two wonderful saves, leaping and twice smothering from Moravcik before the break when Celtic were arriving in waves. There is something constantly ridiculing in the figure of this former reserve keeper at Darlington, but in a match like this, few goalkeepers would have preserved modesty about the scoreline.
Eyal Berkovic, described by Barnes as Celtic's best player early on, even managed to drill a fine, low shot past Preece for Celtic's opening goal before limping off with another injury after 31 minutes. Berkovic was indeed a bundle of energy for Celtic before having to limp out of the proceedings with another injury to contend with.
It emerged later that Berkovic's complaint was a thigh strain. Aberdeen limped out with their hearts and souls gouged out.
- Manager Interview
John Barnes post match:
“The first 15 minutes was probably our best spell, but they had a header saved at 0-0 and you start to think ‘oh-oh’ is this going to be one of those afternoons. But we stuck at it.
“Eyal Berkovic took a slight thigh strainand that was unfortunate as he was one of our better performers in the first 20 minures.
“We still gave the ball away softly and better teams will make us pay for that.
Celtic 7 Aberdeen 0 By Simon Buckland, PA Sport
Celtic beat Aberdeen out of sight at Parkhead with Henrik Larsson and Mark Viduka each claiming awesome hat-tricks at the heart of an astonishing seven-goal rout.
John Barnes' men face the rigours of UEFA Cup action against French league leaders Lyon in midweek, but will have energy to spare after being afforded an exhibition match by the visitors.
The woeful Dons, now with only one league point in 10 Scottish Premier League games, were simply no match for a Celtic team brimming with invention throughout.
It took 17 minutes for the deadlock to be broken through Eyal Berkovic, but the way to goal was always open after that as Celtic were given room to dictate the play – and took ruthless advantage.
Larsson struck twice just before half-time to put the points beyond doubt, but there was to be no Celtic let-up in the second period with Viduka claiming a rapid double.
The £3million recruit from Croatia Zagreb punished a Robbie Winters error on 62 minutes then crashed home another four minutes later as Larsson turned provider.
The talented Swede secured his personal treble after 76 minutes with a typically athletic header against an Aberdeen side that was already run ragged before Viduka made it seven late on.
Barnes' first success as Celtic head coach was a 5-0 win at Pittodrie, but this was a more comprehensive dismantling of the opposition and it might easily have been double figures.
After only one point in the first quarter of the season, Aberdeen always faced an imposing task even with Eoin Jess passing a late fitness test on a groin strain.
Celtic were at full strength which meant Scotland striker Mark Burchill was forced to settle for a place on the bench as Larsson returned after being rested at Ayr in midweek.
From the outset Celtic were the dominant force, a Lubomir Moravcik lay-off setting up Craig Burley for a shot which deflected wide of the mark.
Moments later, Larsson combined with Viduka for defender Alan Stubbs, already joining the attack, to produce a powerful drive against the outside of the post.
On four minutes, Berkovic played in Larsson who rounded Aberdeen keeper David Preece expertly only to lose his balance and send his shot against the post with an open goal in front of him. Aberdeen almost added to their plight when Ricky Gillies' attempt to clear a Viduka header saw Preece forced to back-pedal and prevent an own goal with a sharp save.
Russell Anderson's header from a Jess free kick forced Jonathan Gould into action, but the response was swift from Celtic, Stubbs having a set-piece effort saved one-handed by Preece.
The breakthrough finally came for Celtic after 17 minutes when Viduka played in Berkovic who calmly tucked the ball wide of Preece and in from close range.
Moravcik then fired an angled drive into the side-netting as Celtic looked to put the game out of Aberdeen's reach at the earliest possible opportunity.
Berkovic was forced off through injury after 32 minutes to be replaced by Regi Blinker, but the change was to have no impact on Celtic's immense fluency.
The home side moved two ahead after 41 minutes when Moravcik cut inside from the right before finding Burley who in turn slid the ball towards Larsson who made no mistake from eight yards.
Now Aberdeen were reeling and a minute later Larsson burst forward again before teeing up Moravcik only for Preece to twice deny the Slovakian with superb point blank reaction stops.
Yet Celtic were not to be denied a third before the break and when the busy Moravcik crossed from the left, Larsson was on hand to sweep in a stunning volley past Preece.
Winters fired over from the edge of the area in first-half injury time, but the match was already over as a contest with the Dons outclassed by Celtic's movement up front.
Aberdeen's Young was booked for tripping Blinker after the restart and from Moravcik's free kick a chance fell to McNamara who rifled an effort just over from 25 yards.
Gould produced saves to deny both Jess and then Andreas Mayer, but would have been powerless to deprive Winters from close range had the former Dundee United forward got his header on target.
Aberdeen's flurry was to prove short-lived as on 62 minutes Moravcik cut the ball back from the by-line which was pounced on by Viduka after Winters miscontrolled in his own area.
Celtic brought off Burley for Johan Mjallby after 63 minutes and two minutes later might have made it 5-0 when Lambert sent a speculative drive well over.
The 60,000-plus Parkhead crowd did not have long to wait though as on 66 minutes Larsson found Viduka again and after Preece blocked his first effort at goal the Australian tapped in the rebound.
Celtic made it 6-0 after 76 minutes when another Moravcik corner was whipped in for Larsson to rise above the Aberdeen defence to head in his hat-trick.
The Swede departed to a standing ovation, but his was not to be the only hat-trick as Viduka completed his own landmark on 89 minutes after a fine Blinker pass put him through.
Teams:
Celtic: Gould, Riseth, Stubbs, Tebily, McNamara, Burley (Mjallby 62), Berkovic (Blinker 32), Moravcik, Lambert, Larsson (Burchill 78), Viduka.
Subs Not Used: Kharine, Petrov.
Goals: Berkovic 16, Larsson 40, 43, Viduka 61, 64, Larsson 73,Viduka 88.
Aberdeen: Preece, Perry, Anderson, Solberg, Dow, Young, Buchan, Mayer, Gillies (Bett 66), Jess (McAllister 52),Winters (Hamilton 69).
Subs Not Used: Leighton, Lilley.
Booked: Young.
Att: 60,033
Ref: Stuart Dougal (Scotland).