Quick Review
A sell-out in the Celtic sections (but not the QPR sections) as usual, helped to create a fabulous atmosphere at the ground, which saw Celtic rip apart QPR with an early penalty miss being only academic. Great performance again by Brown, but Capone deserves a good mention also.
Trivia
- Capone (trialist) was a star man for the celts.
- First time we had scored 5 goals since Jan 20th.
Teams
Queens Park Rangers team (4-4-2):- Cole; Curtis (Timoska 45), Shimmin (Cullip 59), Stewart (Rehman 59), Barker (Howell 70); Ward (St Aimie 45), Bolder, Bailey (Cochrane 70), Rowlands (Arthur 59); Nygaard (Nardiello 45), Moore (Blackstock 45, Baidoo 70). Goal: St Aimie (66).
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
KStreet
Report
GORDON Strachan's preparations for the new season continue to run smoothly after his Celtic side emphatically brushed aside Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road yesterday. Strachan, who refused to be drawn on reports that he is keen to bring former Celtic midfielder Shaun Maloney back to the club from Aston Villa, believes his players are in good shape before they embark on their campaign to retain the Scottish Premier League title. "Our new lads have had a taste of what it's like to play for Celtic,'' said Strachan. "Our passing could have been better at times but we had a scintillating 25-minute spell in the second half.'' Celtic's afternoon got off to a false start when QPR goalkeeper Jake Cole saved Jan Vennegor of Hesselink's early penalty. But Cole soon fell from grace when he seemed to have triallist Adriano Caponi's 25-yard shot covered but succeeded only in palming the ball into the net. Cole was beaten again before half-time when Mark Brown slotted home. QPR's Dexter Blackstock headed weakly wide early in the second half and the Championship side were punished when Vennegor of Hesselink found the net twice in three minutes. First the Dutchman drove a shot in off a post and then he tapped the ball home following a corner. Home fans were lifted when Kieron St Aimie netted a left-foot shot but Celtic's lead was quickly restored by Scott McDonald. QPR manager John Gregory said: "It was our first pre-season game while it was Celtic's fourth – and they have to win every game because their fans demand it.'' (c) 2007 Telegraph Group Limited, London The Daily Telegraph