2018-09-29: Celtic 1-0 Aberdeen, SP

Trivia

• Back to the league after the League Cup match in midweek.
• A minute’s applause before start in tribute to ex-Celts Jim Brogan and Graeme Morrison who both passed away this week. RIP
• Referee was a joke, Bobby Madden, very biased in the opinion of many.
• Bobby Madden went crazy with the Celtic trainer taking Eduoard off (after a very bad challenge) in fact physically confronting him, yet 10/15mins later allowed May to stroll off to the 1/2 way line & stood and watched
• Dedryck Boyata is a colossus at the back for Celtic, from a team that couldn't keep the ball out of the net thats now 7 clean sheets in eight appearances this season, with their lack of goals so far this season his performances at the other end of the pitch are even more vital.
• Hearts won their game to stay top, Sevco lost to Livingston (who are doing excellent despite being newly promoted and sit 3rd in the table). Celtic 5th in the table, six behind Hearts, 2 ahead of Sevco.
• Sevco fan attacked linesman in their defeat to Livingston throwing object at him which lead to a deep head gash at the back of his head. Despicable act.
• Eduoard injured in a bad challenge by Aberdeen player.
• Forrest has signed 4 y extension.
• Shaun Maloney has left Celtic to work permanently now with Belgian national squad. Good luck.
• Both Betfred Cup semi-finals will be played at Hampden on the same day.Aberdeen v Rangers will kick off at noon on Sunday 28 October.Hearts v Celtic will then follow at 7.45pm.Both League Cup semi-finals normally take place at Hampden, one on Saturday and the other on Sunday, but both Glasgow clubs are in Europa League action on the preceding Thursday night. Lots of complaints on this one.
• Brendan Rodgers is not alarmed by Celtic's start to the season. He understands the fans will be after the side has dropped eight points in the opening six games and sat sixth in the league. He said: "But what I am doing in terms of the bigger picture is staying calm."
• Brendan Rodgers has admitted he was offered £8 million up front to leave Celtic and join an unnamed Chinese club – and the Northern Irishman could have supersized his salary in the Chinese Super League.
• A former Liverpool boss, who was a target for Beijing Guoan before taking the reins at Celtic, said: “Since I’ve been at Celtic the last couple of years I’ve had a few offers, so that’s no different to any of the others. “My focus is very much on Celtic and being here, and trying to help us rise to the challenge of this season. There’s nothing more really to say on that. [China] is an awful lot of money. But I’ve found
• happiness here.”
  Golf: Europe won the Ryder Cup in Paris. Congrats

Review

Brendan Rodgers: "It was a very good win for us off the back of a tough game midweek. Aberdeen are hard opponent to play against so I'm very pleased with how we pushed it. To beat one of your rivals is great so it’s a very good win."

(MoN's left eyebrow of KDS)

Another huge result and a game that we needed to win to make sure things don't spiral again (which is after one negative result as things stand right now). We need to make sure that we keep it up and beat St Johnstone again next week.

The match itself was generally more positive than the past few in terms of attack with the team being more direct and a lot more movement from the forward players. Really enjoyed watching Forrest move around all behind Griffiths all of the width of the field and, if he'd had a bit more luck, would have had a goal today. McGregor played fine, not as good as we were used to from him but better than the last month or so. Sinclair's goal might just give him a little spark again; there were a couple of occasions after the goal that he seemed to appear much more willing to take his man on or drift inside rather than hide away on the wing behind Logan. Fingers crossed this can happen more in the future.

Tierney did not have a good game today from a defensive point of view and didn't offer too much going forward. He played better in the last 10/15mins or so with that particular challenge after Hendry had effed it being a high point but he was not at his best by any means. We need him to play much better on Thursday. Hendry and Boyata were both, in the main, good but the couple of moments where Hendry wasn't switched on was very obviously held up against Boyata being alert and commanding for the entire game. When he plays well we're 90% towards a clean sheet.

Overall we were a little better in attack than in previous games and solid in defence. Aberdeen didn't really stretch us too much but when they did got some joy running at Lustig and pulling Hendry away from his position and making the most of him being anything but a football player. No one player really stood out and the team collectively trundled along fine enough but we're in need of a few top individual performances to do more than grind out these 1-0s at the moment.

Teams

Articles

• Match Report (see end of page below)

Pictures

• Match Pictures

Forum

• Pre-match https://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/celtic-v-aberdeen-pre-match-thread-saturday-29th-s-t134924.html?view=unread#unread
• Match https://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/live-match-ft-celtic-1-0-aberdeen-sinclair-t134935.html
• Post Match https://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/post-match-thread-celtic-1-v-0-aberdeen-sinclair-t134936.html?view=unread#unread

MOTM

• Voting Thread https://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/motm-st-johnstone-v-celtic-0-1-lcqf-26-09-18-t134923.html?view=unread#unread
• Result Thread
• Winner –

Stats

Possession
Home63%
Away37%

Shots
Home17
Away10

Shots on Target
Home3
Away3

Corners
Home3
Away3

Fouls
Home14
Away13

Articles

Celtic 1 – 0 Aberdeen: Scott Sinclair nets winner in close encounter

Stephen Halliday
Published: 16:57 Saturday 29 September 2018
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/teams/celtic/celtic-1-0-aberdeen-scott-sinclair-nets-winner-in-close-encounter-1-4807292
If Scott Sinclair’s struggle to rediscover his stellar first season form for Celtic has been a source of exasperation for the club’s supporters, no-one has felt more frustrated than the player himself.

That much was clear for all to see in the pumped-up manner the winger celebrated his first goal at Celtic Park since January which secured a hard-earned and valuable victory for the Scottish champions.

Sinclair, as he has for large parts of the last year or so, started the afternoon on the substitutes’ bench. An injury sustained by Odsonne Edouard, when he was floored by a crunching challenge from Aberdeen defender Scott McKenna, saw Sinclair pressed into action just before half-time.

The 29-year-old duly made the difference in a keenly contested affair, showing a spark of delightful ingenuity to backheel Celtic’s 63rd minute winner beyond Joe Lewis.

“You could see from my celebration that it means a lot,” admitted Sinclair. “When you haven’t scored here for what feels like forever, the emotion and the anger build up, not playing and being in and out.

“At the same time, it’s relief. Hopefully now I can build on it going into the next game and hopefully go from there. Being on the bench so much has been frustrating. From being Player of the Year in my first season and top scorer in my second, being on the bench and sometimes not making an impact is frustrating.

“It makes you angry. The thing is I can only control what I do on the training ground. So whatever is out of my control, I try not to let that affect me but just keep my head down and work hard.”

Before he limped off, with a dead leg which is unlikely to rule him out of Thursday’s Europa League match in Salzburg, Edouard had come closest to making a breakthrough in the first half. After cutting in from the left, he was desperately unlucky to see his sweetly struck right foot shot from 22 yards crash against the right hand post of the beaten Lewis in the 26th minute.

Celtic had been the more progressive side from the start without coming close to rediscovering the sustained fluency which has eluded them for so much of this season. James Forrest might have done better than scoop a shot over from 10 yards before Jack Hendry, back in the starting line-up for the injured Kristoffer Ajer, headed off target after being picked out by a Leigh Griffiths free-kick.

Aberdeen had no shortage of attack-minded players on the pitch and they sought to catch the hosts on the counter whenever possible. Gary Mackay-Steven carried their biggest threat against his former club, the winger causing his old team-mates several anxious moments.

Mackay-Steven seized on a defensive error by Hendry to set up a chance which Niall McGinn speared wide, then came close to plundering the lead for Aberdeen in the 42nd minute when he skipped beyond several challenges into the area and saw his close range shot diverted wide by a fine Craig Gordon save.

James Wilson’s header was cleared off the line by Griffiths from the subsequent corner and Aberdeen would have gone into the interval fuelled by a growing sense of self-belief.

Celtic tried to reassert their authority at the start of the second half and Lewis had to get down sharply to his left to keep out a Callum McGregor shot. But the Dons were trying to go toe-to-toe with the champions and Gordon was called into action again when, after Stevie May had left Hendry floundering, the Celtic ‘keeper stretched to his right to keep out Wilson’s curling effort. Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers replaced the listless Olivier Ntcham with Tom Rogic in a bid to bring fresh creativity in midfield and it was Celtic who duly took the initiative with Sinclair’s instinctive strike. Forrest’s cross from the right fell to Griffiths who managed to scramble the ball towards Sinclair. With his back to goal, he left Lewis flat-footed as he back-heeled his shot home from close range.

“That will do him the world of good,” observed Rodgers of Sinclair’s contribution to a victory which also saw Celtic record a seventh clean sheet in their last eight games.

“We are showing another side of us,” he added. “Okay, we’ve played a couple of years where it has been all-singing, all-dancing – lots of chances, goals and records.

“But at times in football you also have to show a resilience and spirit. So until we get back – and I believe our movement and creativity is on the way back to where we want it to be – you’ve got to find a way to win. That game, earlier in the season, could have been 0-0. But we kept pushing today and I’m delighted for the players.”

Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes felt his team’s approach merited a better outcome.

“A lot of teams come here hoping to win, we came with a team looking to win,” he said. “A combination of missed chances and some very good goalkeeping probably cost us a point.”

BBC

By Jonathan Sutherland

BBC Scotland at Celtic Park

From the section Scottish Premiership

Scott Sinclair replaced the injured Odsonne Edouard in the first half and got the crucial goal
Scott Sinclair replaced the injured Odsonne Edouard in the first half and got the crucial goal

Scott Sinclair's brilliant backheel finish edged Celtic past Aberdeen to win for the first time in three Scottish Premiership games.

The victory moves the champions up to fourth, and keeps them six points behind leaders Hearts.

Odsonne Edouard hit a post from long range in the first period for the hosts before coming off with an injury.

And Aberdeen's Gary Mackay-Steven was brilliantly denied by Craig Gordon when clean through.

The Dons had further chances but failed to score for the second match in a row, and have found the net just twice in their past five games.

Saturday's Premiership action as it happened

A game that failed to ignite

For the past four seasons, these have been the two best sides in the division, but both began the day in mid-table and – like their starts to the campaign – this game never truly ignited.

There were chances for both teams in the first half, but not the quantity from Celtic that we have become accustomed to under Brendan Rodgers.

Fresh from signing a new contract, James Forrest shot over early on but the next big opportunity came 20 minutes later, when Niall McGinn jabbbed a Mackay-Steven cross just wide.

Edouard hit a post for Celtic from 25 yards and there was a huge shout for a penalty when the young Frenchman went down under a challenge from Scott McKenna. But referee Bobby Madden said no, even if Edouard required treatment for a dead leg, and was replaced by Sinclair soon after.

Aberdeen then had two big chances. The first came from a great run from Mackay-Steven but his shot was diverted wide. Then, from the resulting corner, Andrew Considine's header was cleared off the line.

Both goalkeepers were forced to field long-distance efforts but the breakthrough soon came. Sinclair had his back to goal when the ball fell to him in the six-yard box, but improvised brilliantly to backheel into the net.

The goal put a spring in the Celtic step, and Joe Lewis had to thwart a Leigh Griffiths free-kick, but Aberdeen remained a threat.

Michael Devlin got a toe to a Mackay-Steven free-kick but it flew narrowly wide. It was a huge chance.
Gary Mackay-Steven
Gary Mackay-Steven was in lively mood against his former club
'Sinclair sparks into life'- analysis

Sinclair's first campaign was nothing short of sensational. His second was good. But this season he has looked a shadow of the player he once was.

So the roar that went up around Celtic Park when he found the back of the net with an audacious effort had more to it than just the celebration of an important goal.

At his best he can be a player the fans truly love. Celtic will he hoping this strike not only brings a spark back to Sinclair, but the whole team.
'I'm really proud of the players' – manager reaction

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers: "I'm really proud of the players today. We're not scoring lots of goals as of yet but what's important is that you win."

"It's another rival we've played and got a win, we're still searching for that instinct to score more goals and be more creative."

Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes: "I thought it was harsh on us, we were very good in the game. It was a performance full of attitude and belief and personality that I want my team to have.

"The goal is scruffy, it pops up in the air from a deflection. Normally you can apportion some blame to your players in the build up but I can't really, you've got to applaud Scott Sinclair's backheel."