2008-09-17: Celtic 0-0 Aalborg, Champions League

Match Pictures | Champions league 2008-2009 | Matches: 2008 – 2009 | 2008-2009 Pictures

Trivia

  • Robson missed a penalty!
  • Referee sent off an Aalborg player, only to find out he sent off the wrong guy!!!! Bit of a commotion but all too late, the guy was told to go. Really poor stuff.
  • Man U 0-0 Villarreal in the other game, so not bad or great for us.
  • Paolo Nutini salutes the fans at half time.
  • The Malley's entertain the fans before the match.
  • Aalborg are managed by ex Scotland captain Bruce Rioch.

Review

Disappointing start to the group, where we played the weakest team at home in the first game and squandered the chance to get 3pts and go top. Some bad luck, missing good chances & possession and then missing a penalty (a bad straight down the middle nonsense by Robson), but also some bad officiating with the referee disallowign a goal. Saying that Aalborg got their homework right and some of our players were below par for some reason. Samaras had a fair game but squandered more than he should have. Away to Villarreal next. Hoping to win our first away game in the CL is not expected to happen there!

Teams

Celtic:
Boruc,
Hinkel, Caldwell, McManus, Naylor,
Nakamura, Scott Brown, Robson, Maloney (Vennegoor of Hesselink 72)
McDonald (McGeady 63), Samaras.
Subs Not Used: Mark Brown, Hartley, Wilson, Crosas, Loovens.
Booked: McManus, Samaras.

Aalborg
Zaza, Beauchamp, Olfers, Jakobsen, Pedersen, Augustinussen, Curth (Lasse Nielsen 85), Johansson, Risgaard, Enevoldsen, Saganowski.
Subs Not Used: Stenild, Due, Caca, Braemer, Kristensen, Ronnie Schwartz Nielsen.
Booked: Johansson
Sent Off: Beauchamp (79).

Att: 57,432
Ref: Matteo Trefoloni (Italy)

Articles

Pictures

KStreet

MOTM v Aalborg Georgios Samaras

Stats

Celtic AaB
0 Goals scored 0
2 Yellow card 1
0 Red card 1
2 Shots on goal 1
7 Shots wide 6
18 Fouls committed 18
6 Corners 4
4 Offsides 0
35' 10'' Ball. Poss. (time) 22' 8''
61% Ball. Poss. (%) 39%

Gls: Goals scored SP: Shots hitting post SC: Shots hitting bar ST: Shots on target SW: Shots wide FC: Fouls committed FS: Fouls suffered OF: Offside AS: Assists YC: Yellow cards RC: Red cards

Articles

Strachan says away win imperative

BBC

Gordon Strachan says Celtic must take something from their next Champions League match away to Villarreal, after drawing a blank at home to Aalborg.

The Bhoys have never won a Champions League match on their travels in five editions of the competition.

"We've got to go and try and win a game away from home, it becomes imperative now," Strachan said.

"In the first half we fell below the standard we've set, and the result leaves us with a real challenge."

However, when assessing the match the Celtic manager felt his side did enough to take three points.

"In the first half we weren't at our best in certain areas," said Strachan.

"But in the second 45 minutes, territorially and in terms of chances and crosses, that's the most we've made in the Champions League.

"We weren't at our best in a lot of areas and you really need to be in order to win Champions Leagues.

"We weren't clinical enough and we never really made their goalkeeper make outstanding saves."

Winger Aiden McGeady was again left on the bench, and Strachan says continuity was the reason.

"We played well on Saturday and I wanted to try and keep Shaun Maloney playing in that position," he explained.

Celtic did have the ball in the net after Scott Brown played a neat one-two with Shunsuke Nakamura.

And there appeared to be no complaints when the assistant referee flagged for offside.

But the Celtic manager was adamant the goal should have stood.

"It was onside, and I know for a fact that the guy the referee sent off wasn't the right guy too, so it wasn't a great night."

Despite Barry Robson missing a penalty that could have sealed the points, Strachan had words of encouragement for the midfielder.

"I've been there myself, but Barry was a big performer for us at the end of last season, and he was a big performer on Saturday," he said.

"He'll probably have a long night, but he'll come back from it."

Celtic 0-0 AaB Aalborg

By David McDaid
BBC

Barry Robson missed a penalty as Celtic could only manage a goalless draw in their Champions League opener at home to Aalborg.

Despite being pre-match underdogs, it was the Danish champions who had the better of the first period.

Celtic should have taken the lead but Robson slammed his 28th-minute spot kick against the goalkeeper's legs.

And Aalborg had the wrong player sent off near the end, as Celtic pushed in vain for a winner.

The result against the perceived weakest team in the group is a blow to the Scottish champions, who have depended on an excellent home record to progress to the last 16 in the previous two seasons.

Although not filled to capacity, the return of the Champions League atmosphere to Celtic Park appeared to give the home side some extra energy.

However, despite the pacy start, and enjoying the lion's share of possession, the Danes were well-organised and frustrated their hosts.

Celtic's early tactic of high diagonal balls into the box bore no fruit, with the Aalborg central defensive pairing of Michael Beauchamp and Michael Jakobsen mopping up everything with ease.

Georgios Samaras decided to try his luck from the corner of the box, but the rising shot on 11 minutes never tested Karim Zaza in the Aalborg goal.

Celtic Park then breathed a collective sigh of relief on 15 minutes as the Danish champions sparked to life.

Jeppe Curth was allowed to run unmarked through the centre of the home defence, only to slip Thomas Augustinussen's lofted ball past the post with Artur Boruc advancing.

That chance inspired a spell of intense Aalborg pressure, with Augustinussen in particular seeing lots of the ball.

The brown-shirted Danes were retaining the ball efficiently and pushed forward in numbers, forcing a spate of corners.

Just when Aalborg were taking control of the game, Celtic were handed a lifeline on 28 minutes, after Shaun Maloney was felled by Dutchman Steve Olfers in the box.

However, Robson, normally so dependable from 12 yards, drove the spot kick low down the middle, and Zaza saved with his legs.

Despite the penalty failure, Celtic rallied briefly, but they must have been the happier side to hear the half-time whistle as the Danes finished much the stronger side.

In stark contrast to the way they finished the first half, the home side burst out of the blocks for the second period.

Within the first few minutes, Scott Brown, Shunsuke Nakamura and Samaras all made chances, as Celtic stepped up the pace.

Nakamura and Samaras had struggled to make an impact in the first half, but appeared rejuvenated.

The home crowd were expectant when the Japanese had a free-kick around 25 yards out, but Zaza held the tame effort.

Brown had the ball in the net after a neat one-two with Nakamura, but the flag went up for offside, despite video replays suggesting the Scotland internationalist was in line with the last man.

Shunsuke Nakamura
Nakamura was denied late on from a trademark free-kick

Moments later Nakamura fed the ball through to Samaras in the box, but the striker just failed to direct his shot past Zaza.

At the other end, Aalborg worked a training ground set-piece that foxed the Celtic defence, but was headed wide.

With 15 minutes remaining Samaras was presented with a great chance to score.

But rather than strike Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink's pass first-time, the Greek tried to dribble the ball into the net, and the Danes regrouped to snuff out the danger.

Aalborg were reduced to 10 men on 79 minutes after Samaras was tripped when through on goal.

But incredibly, referee Matteo Simone Trefoloni sent off the wrong player, as Beauchamp was red-carded for Jakobsen's infringement.

Zaza saved Nakamura's resultant free-kick brilliantly, and the Danes survived a late onslaught to deprive Celtic of another opening game victory for the sixth time in succession.

Celtic: Boruc, Hinkel, Caldwell, McManus, Naylor, Nakamura, Scott Brown, Robson, Maloney (Vennegoor of Hesselink 72), McDonald (McGeady 63), Samaras.
Subs Not Used: Mark Brown, Hartley, Wilson, Crosas, Loovens.

Booked: McManus, Samaras.

Aalborg: Zaza, Beauchamp, Olfers, Jakobsen, Pedersen, Augustinussen, Curth (Lasse Nielsen 85), Johansson, Risgaard, Enevoldsen, Saganowski.
Subs Not Used: Stenild, Due, Caca, Braemer, Kristensen, Ronnie Schwartz Nielsen.

Booked: Johansson Sent Off: Beauchamp (79).

Att: 57,432

Ref: Matteo Trefoloni (Italy)

Celtic get simple things wrong.

18 September 2008

Provided by: Irish Times

Celtic 0 Aalborg 0IF THIS was supposed to be the simple part of Group E for Celtic, their supporters must have genuine concerns over what lies in wait when Manchester United and Villarreal arrive.
Aalborg's semi-stubborn resistance was sufficient to rebuff Gordon Strachan's side, the Danes even surviving the closing 11 minutes with 10 men.
They will harbour a genuine grievance after Michael Beauchamp was sent off in a clear case of mistaken identity. But claiming a point at a ground where more illustrious sides have failed should placate them.
Celtic, who squandered a first-half penalty, were uncannily sluggish.
Strachan could have derived both solace and anxiety from a pre-match glance at statistics. Celtic's flawless performances at home in the previous two seasons – six wins out of six in group matches – have been instrumental in their twice reaching the last 16.
The Scottish champions had, however, been defeated five times in a row in their first group match.
This game appeared distinctly more straightforward.
Bruce Rioch, famed for almost miraculous acts in resurrecting the fortunes of Bolton Wanderers and Middlesbrough, has stressed that the transfer fee that took Dimitar Berbatov to Manchester United would pay his club's wages for seven years.
Yet the Danes gave anything but the impression of being in awe. Michael Jakobsen worried Artur Boruc with a fierce free-kick, before Jeppe Curth failed to fully control his shot when sent clean through.
Stephen McManus, the Celtic captain, summed up their anxiety with a late challenge and a 17th-minute booking.
Celtic's penalty chance on the half hour was fortuitous. Not only had they hardly been seen as an attacking threat at all before Steve Olfers tripped Shaun Maloney, but Maloney also appeared to handle the ball as he controlled Georgios Samaras's knock-down.
Perhaps justice was done as Karim Zaza saved Barry Robson's penalty-kick with his feet.
Celtic Park, which can be one of Europe's most intimidating arenas, echoed to cries of derision long before Strachan's men were booed off at the interval.
Celtic's attacking endeavours in the opening five minutes of the second half amounted to more than they had conjured up in the previous 45.
Scott Brown scooped a shot over the bar after a sweeping move, Samaras then coming much closer with a curling effort.
For several players it was a night worth forgetting. Scott McDonald spent more time engaging in fruitless attempts to win free-kicks and arguing with his team-mates than offering a goalscoring threat , while Samaras toiled to make any impact.
Desperate times called for Scotland's reigning player of the year, Aiden McGeady, who replaced McDonald with 27 minutes to play.
Controversy followed, Beauchamp wrongly dismissed after Michael Jakobsen hauled down Samaras as the Greek striker bore down on goal.
Nakamura's subsequent free-kick was brilliantly clawed away by Zaza in a moment that summed up Celtic's troubled evening.
CELTIC:Boruc, Hinkel, Caldwell, McManus, Naylor, Nakamura, Scott Brown, Robson, Maloney (Vennegoor of Hesselink 72), McDonald (McGeady 63), Samaras. Subs not used: Mark Brown, Hartley, Wilson, Crosas, Loovens. Booked: McManus, Samaras.
AALBORG:Zaza, Beauchamp, Olfers, Jakobsen, Pedersen, Augustinussen, Curth (Lasse Nielsen 85), Johansson, Risgaard, Enevoldsen, Saganowski. Subs not used: Stenild, Due, Caca, Braemer, Kristensen, Ronnie Schwartz Nielsen. Sent off: Beauchamp (79). Booked: Johansson.
Referee:Matteo Trefoloni (Italy).
Guardian Service
(c) 2008, The Irish Times.
Irish Times