2011-11-23: Celtic 2-1 Dunfermline, SPL

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Trivia

• Celtic now 7pts behind Rangers, we win our game in hand.
• Celtic have now only scored one penalty for the last six awarded in the SPL!!!!
• Celtic sign Mikael Lustig (from Jan) and youngster Andre Blackman.
• Sion case being heard the next day, Swiss Court already now moved against lower Swiss court judgement. Celtic & UEFA should now win case.
• Kill the Bill stuff main thing for support.
• Graham Spiers: “Once again this Green Brigade “controversy” is beyond me. In my 5 or 6 visits to CP this season they’ve been nothing but noisy + impressive.”
• Rumours & stories in paper that Gordon Strachan to return to Celtic! Lennon on G Strachan’s proposed return to Celtic: “I wasn’t averse to it. I need all the experience I can get. But it’s dead and buried.”
• Green Brigade banner: “Your desperate attempts to even the score do not fool the Celtic support”

Review

Neil Lennon: ‘It is ridiculous. All people will now talk about is how we had to scramble for the win, when we created umpteen chances.’ 2-1.”

(Movarcik 67 from KDS)
Not going to get overly critical of the way the game finished. We were never in any real danger of dropping points. It was great to see us come out and grab the game by the throat, and the football in the 1st half was some of the best we’ve seen in a good while. That’s encouraging. Sure, we could have scored a few more but sometimes you have nights where you do everything but score. We got two that mattered early on.

There are signs that we’re recovering a bit of the form and fight that we showed in the 2nd half of last season. But for all that we’re showing some signs of progress, we do still look fragile at the back. And the real test of any progress will come in December, with a trip to Tannadice, and home games with Hearts and the huns.

But it’s another 3pts in the bag. We’ve put ourselves in a position where that’s the most important thing. As for the rest, the positives from the first half display outweigh the negatives of the last half hour. It’d be great to have a level of performance that goes the full 90 minutes but that will come in time if we keep at it. We just need to keep grinding out the wins and hanging on in there until it does.

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Celtic 2 – 1 Dunfermline: Uninspired Celts reel in Rangers’ lead at top

The Scotsman

THEY may have made it needlessly hard for themselves but Celtic got the win they needed last night to move into Rangers’ slipstream at the top of the SPL.

For the first time since the start of the season, Neil Lennon’s team racked up a third consecutive league win in what was their game in hand on the leaders. It moves them to within seven points of the champions, a gap they can cut to four if they defeat St Mirren at home on Saturday.

But it was some way short of the kind of performance which would persuade anyone that Celtic are capable of the kind of sustained winning run they may require to take the initiative in the title race.

Given the perfect opening by Gary Hooper’s ninth goal of the season after just six minutes, followed quickly by James Forrest making it 2-0, Celtic failed to capitalise further on their first-half superiority.

An enterprising Dunfermline side were eventually rewarded with Andy Barrowman’s goal three minutes from time but it came just too late to place any significant pressure on the home side.
Celtic’s potent start to the match was all that Lennon could have wished for as the early strikes from Hooper and Forrest left them ideally placed for the victory which was certainly the minimum requirement in a fixture postponed at the start of the season as the Parkhead club were participating in a friendly tournament in Dublin.

Dunfermline paid the price for a startlingly open and positive approach which left them exposed to some slick and swift counter-attacking. The visitors, with Andy Kirk and Barrowman leading the line in a 3-5-2 formation, did cause an early flutter of concern for Celtic. A through ball from Barrowman sent Ryan Thomson racing through on goal but the danger was cut out by Joe Ledley’s excellent covering tackle. Dunfermline were unable to make anything of the resultant corner and, instead, found themselves behind almost immediately.

A loose and ill-advised back pass from young midfielder Paul Willis, intended for one of his central defenders, went straight to Hooper, who stepped smartly into space and sprinted clear to beat Paul Gallacher with a low right-foot shot.

There was much that was fluent and pleasing on the eye in Celtic’s work, with possession retained effectively and considerable imagination in the midfield and attacking areas. They were less assured at the back, a familiar scenario this season, and Ledley was required on another couple of occasions to track across and compensate for Daniel Majstorovic’s uncertainty.

But, although Dunfermline continued to commit plenty of players forward, Celtic always looked more incisive and threatening as an attacking force.

They doubled their lead with a admirably constructed goal in the 13th minute. Beram Kayal won the ball tigerishly in midfield to start the move. From the right, Forrest fed Hooper who in turn shuttled the ball to Kris Commons. He picked out Anthony Stokes on the left of the penalty area and the Irish striker’s shot was parried by Gallacher. The ball broke to Hooper in an awkward position but he cutely back-heeled the ball into the path of Forrest who drove home his seventh goal of the campaign from just outside the six-yard box.

There was already a sense the game was up for Dunfermline and Celtic carved out several premium opportunities but were unable to match the deadliness of their earlier finishing.

Commons, back in the starting line-up at the expense of Georgios Samaras, missed from close range, while Forrest passed up a glorious chance when he dragged a low shot inches wide of the left hand post.

Dunfermline had a claim for a penalty turned down when Majstorovic appeared to climb over Thomson in the box. Referee Bobby Madden was unimpressed but it was a reminder that the visitors were just one break away from regaining a foothold.

Lennon decided to make a change for the resumption. Paddy McCourt was introduced to the fray and it was little surprise that the man who made way was Commons, the Scotland midfielder having toiled again to match the kind of impact he made a year ago.

McCourt’s dribbling gave the Dunfermline defence a fresh problem but it was the quick feet of Forrest which earned Celtic the opportunity to secure a more comfortable lead in the 56th minute. Paul Burns was the man who made an injudicious challenge on the pacy winger right on the edge of the box as Forrest cut in menacingly from the right. Referee Madden was perfectly placed and pointed to the spot. Stokes, whose recent goalscoring form has been so impressive, wanted to take the kick but, following instructions from the bench, had to step down in favour of Ki Sung-Yeung.

The South Korean stepped forward confidently but blazed his effort several feet wide of Gallacher’s right-hand post.

Stokes soon found himself clear in the box but his finish left much to be desired, however, as he clipped his shot against the right-hand post.

It allowed Dunfermline to retain hope of clawing their way back and, with Lennon increasingly agitated on the sidelines, Fraser Forster was forced to make a couple of fine saves. The big goalkeeper plunged low to his right to turn a Joe Cardle shot behind, then raced smartly off his line to deny another of Dunfermline’s substitutes, Liam Buchanan, as he broke free on the right.
But Forster was unable to prevent Barrowman setting up a nerve-jangling finale for the home fans. The striker latched onto David Graham’s pass in the 87th minute and drove a low right-foot shot beyond Forster’s right hand into the corner. Three minutes of stoppage time extended Celtic’s anxiety but they saw it out to draw Rangers closer into their sights.

Celtic: Forster, Matthews, Wanyama, Majstorovic, Ledley; Forrest, Kayal, Ki, Commons (McCourt 46); Hooper, Stokes (Samaras 81). Subs not used: Zaluska, El Kaddouri, McGeouch, Blackman, Fraser.

Dunfermline: Gallacher, Keddie, Potter, Dowie; Graham, Thomson (Boyle 60), Mason, Willis (Cardle 60), Burns; Kirk (Buchanan 65), Barrowman. Subs not used: Smith, McDougall, Byrne, Young.

BBC

Page last updated at 21:49 GMT, Wednesday, 23 November 2011 Dunfermline have now conceded more goals than any other SPL side. Celtic narrowed the gap on league leaders Rangers to seven points with a home victory over Dunfermline.

Returning to Parkhead for the first time in four years, the visitors were at fault for early goals from Gary Hooper and James Forrest.

But Andy Barrowman’s 86th minute strike led to a nervous end as Celtic held out to secure the win.

Victory means Neil Lennon’s side could be within four points of Rangers if they beat St Mirren on Saturday.

The Celtic manager had made two changes to his starting line up following their weekend win over Inverness, with Kris Commons replacing Georgios Samaras and midfielder Ki Sung-yueng in for Badr El-Kaddouri.

Dunfermline meanwhile made three changes with Andy Dowie, Gary Mason and Barrowman in for the injured Austin McCann, Paddy Boyle and Liam Buchanan.
But the Fife side effectively ended their hopes of a fourth away win of the season within the opening quarter of an hour.

Midfielder Paul Willis’s loose pass in-field from wide on the left was picked up by Hooper, who raced clear of the stunned defenders before slipping the ball past Paul Gallagher in the Pars goal.
A second followed seven minutes later and was again the result of a Dunfermline mistake.

Alex Keddie gave possession away in the middle of the pitch allowing Celtic to break and with the the Dunfermline defence exposed, Commons played in Anthony Stokes inside the box.
Gallagher saved his low drive, but the ball then broke to Hooper who picked out Forrest, the youngster coolly guiding the ball into the net from eight yards out.

With victory seemingly guaranteed Celtic looked like they were in the mood to work on their goal difference column and could have led by five or six by half time.

Captain Beram Kayal had a drive from 25 yards which Gallagher blocked with his feet, moments before Commons had an effort from even further out which went high over the bar. Forrest’s first-half goal was his seventh of the season. Forrest returned to torment the Dunfermline defence on the half-hour mark, weaving his way through their ranks, before crossing to the back post for Stokes who, from an acute angle, could only send it back across the goal to let the Fifers off the hook.

Moments later the roles were reversed when Forrest was set up by Stokes but the outcome was the same as the Scotland international’s low drive skipped past the far post.

Two minutes from the break Hooper became the next Celtic player to pass up on a decent chance when his first-time strike at the edge of the box from Forrest’s cross went wide of the target.
Paddy McCourt was the only change at half time, replacing Commons as the home side continued to press Jim McIntyre’s side.

But after suffering a luckless evening, the visitors were offered the opportunity to establish a foothold when Ki missed from the penalty spot in the 54th minute.

Paul Burns had tackled Forrest on the edge of the box, with referee Bobby Madden pointing instantly to the spot.

After a disagreement with Stokes over who should take the penalty, Ki managed to send Gallager the wrong way, only to direct his shot wide of the left post.

An aggrieved Stokes was further aggravated moments later when set up by a tremendous Ki pass, only to see his left footed strike come off the Dunfermline post, on a frustrating night for the striker.

Dunfermline, whose chances had been limited thus far, increased their energy levels with the introduction of substitute Joe Cardle on the hour mark, the midfielder forcing a double save from Fraser Forster who had an otherwise easy night in goals.

That seemed to inspire more creativity from the Pars, and they were finally to make an impact on the match when Barrowman’s goal reignited the tie with four minutes remaining. David Graham was the architect, threading through a perfect pass which allowed the striker to take a touch before driving across goal from 15 yards out and landing his shot in the right hand corner of Forsters’ net.

That ensured a more nervous end for Celtic than the opening stages had suggested, but the home side held out to set up the opportunity to move with four points of Rangers when they host St Mirren on Saturday.

BBC

© 2011

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