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Trivia
- Celtic took all three points from Hibernian to cling on to their lead at the top of the table heading into Saturday's Old Firm showdown.
- With Henrik Larsson missing through illness, it was left to others to create the chances.
- Stilian Petrov snatched the winner for Celtic at Easter Road as they struggled to break down a resilient Hibernian.
Review
Petrov came close after five minutes when he burst into the box only to see his shot blocked by Yannick Zambernardi.
But, as the game progressed, the Edinburgh side started to enjoy more possession and threatened the Celtic defence after nine minutes. Ian Murray played a short ball to Derek Townsley and the former Motherwell man drove the ball at goal. But he was denied by Hoops defender Bobo Balde who managed to clear the danger.
David Fernandez tried to take advantage of his start in the first team by unleashing a shot just inside the 18-yard box. But he could not get the ball past Tam McManus, who had tracked back to help out the Hibs defence.
Hibs tried to keep the momentum going after the break when McManus took the ball round Ulrik Laursen before crossing to Townsley at the far post. But he just failed to connect with the ball and the chance was lost.
Celtic had a chance from a set-piece when they were handed a free kick 30 yards out. Thompson curled the ball into the area, meeting Balde at the far post but the defender sent his header wide of the upright.
John Hartson had contributed little to the game for Celtic but he should have netted just seconds later only to fire wide from eight yards out. But the Welshman made amends after 77 minutes when he played the ball through to Petrov who finally broke the deadlock when he fired a shot past Colgan.
Teams
Hibernian:-
Colgan, Smith, Fenwick, Zambernardi, Orman (Reid 88), O'Neil, Murray (Jack 73), Wiss (Brebner 73), James, McManus, Townsley.
Subs not used:- Caig, Doumbe.
Booked:- Murray, Wiss.
Celtic:-
Douglas, Valgaeren, Balde, Laursen, Sylla (McNamara 76), Lambert, Lennon, Petrov, Thompson (Guppy 62), Hartson, Fernandez (Maloney 70).
Subs not used:- Gould, Crainey.
Goal:- Petrov 77.
Booked:- Petrov, McNamara.
Att:- 12,042
Ref:– M McCurry.
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
- Match Report (BBC)
Pictures
Stats
| Hibernian | 0-1 | Celtic |
| 3 | Shots On Target | 6 |
| 4 | Shots Off Target | 4 |
| 22 | Fouls (Conceded) | 13 |
| 2 | Corners | 4 |
| 2 | Yellow Cards | 2 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
Petrov strike keeps Celtic top
BBC
Hibernian 0-1 Celtic
Stilian Petrov snatched all three points for Celtic at Easter Road as they struggled to break down a resilient Hibernian.
The Bulgarian midfielder burst into the home side's box with 13 minutes remaining and drilled the ball past Nick Colgan.
Celtic started the game strongly and immediately put the Hibernian goal under pressure.
With Henrik Larsson missing through illness, it was left to others to create the chances.
And Petrov came close after five minutes when he burst into the box only to see his shot blocked by Yannick Zambernardi.
But, as the game progressed, the Edinburgh side started to enjoy more possession and threatened the Celtic defence after nine minutes.
Hibs' midfielder Ian Murray
Hibs had chances to take the lead
Ian Murray played a short ball to Derek Townsley and the former Motherwell man drove the ball at goal.
But he was denied by Hoops defender Bobo Balde who managed to clear the danger.
David Fernandez tried to take advantage of his start in the first team by unleashing a shot just inside the 18-yard box.
But he could not get the ball past Tam McManus, who had tracked back to help out the Hibs defence.
Hibs had the best chance of the game so far after 21 minutes when Townsley's header from John O'Neil's corner was cleared off the line by Alan Thompson.
Hibs tried to keep the momentum going after the break when McManus took the ball round Ulrik Laursen before crossing to Townsley at the far post.
But he just failed to connect with the ball and the chance was lost.
Celtic had a chance from a set-piece when they were handed a free kick 30 yards out.
Thompson curled the ball into the area, meeting Balde at the far post but the defender sent his header wide of the upright.
Hibs continued to threaten and O'Neil tried his luck with a long, low effort.
Celtic keeper Douglas managed to block but spilled the ball and had to rely on Laursen to clear the danger.
John Hartson had contributed little to the game for Celtic but he should have netted just seconds later only to fire wide from eight yards out.
But the Welshman made amends after 77 minutes when he played the ball through to Petrov who finally broke the deadlock when he fired a shot past Colgan.
McManus had the chance to snatch a share of the points for Hibs shortly before the final whistle but the young striker nodded over the crossbar from just outside the six-yard box.
Hibernian: Colgan, Smith, Fenwick, Zambernardi, Orman (Reid 88), O'Neil, Murray (Jack 73), Wiss (Brebner 73), James, McManus, Townsley.
Subs Not Used: Caig, Doumbe.
Booked: Murray, Wiss.
Celtic: Douglas, Valgaeren, Balde, Laursen, Sylla (McNamara 76), Lambert, Lennon, Petrov, Thompson (Guppy 62), Hartson, Fernandez (Maloney 70).
Subs Not Used: Gould, Crainey.
Booked: Petrov, McNamara.
Attendance: 12,042
Referee: Michael McCurry _