2019-10-03: Celtic 2-0 CFR CLUJ, UEFA Cup

Trivia

Review

(CU Twitter)
Classic night of European football – big crowd, pitch looking great under the lights, Celtic playing attacking football, cracking result and finishing the night in traditional style with the on ramp to the m8 being shut.

Teams

Celtic

• 67Forster
• 33Elhamed
• 2JullienBooked at 46mins
• 35Ajer
• 23Bolingoli-Mbombo
• 8Brown
• 42McGregorBooked at 25mins
• 49Forrest· Substituted forHayesat 86'minutes

• · 17ChristieSubstituted forNtchamat 90'minutes

• 27Elyounoussi
• 22EdouardBooked at 88mins

Substitutes

• 1Gordon
• 6Bitton
• 11Sinclair
• 13Bauer
• 15Hayes
• 18Rogic
• 21Ntcham

Goals

• Edouard (20' minutes),
• Elyounoussi (59' minutes) (some say an OG as deflection involved)

CFR Cluj

• 87Arlauskis
• 16Susic
• 3Burca
• 21Boli
• 45Malino Paulino
• 6Coimbra Aurélio· Substituted forCulioat 57'minutes

• · 37Bordeianu
• · 8DjokovicBooked at 51mins Substituted forGolofcaat 81'minutes
• · 9Omrani
• · 99RondónBooked at 42mins Substituted forPaunat 70'minutes

• 10Deac

Substitutes

• 1Fernández Collado
• 7Paun
• 19Culio
• 23Golofca
• 28Hoban
• 77Peteleu
• 92Cestor

Referee:
Daniel Siebert

Attendance: 58,000 (sellout)

Articles

• Match Report (see end of page below)

Pictures

• Match Pictures

Forum

• Pre-match
• Match
• Post Match

MOTM

• Voting Thread
• Result Thread
• Winner –

Stats

Home TeamCelticAway TeamCFR Cluj

Possession
Home56%
Away44%

Shots
Home17
Away8

Shots on Target
Home5
Away2

Corners
Home7
Away3

Fouls
Home7
Away11

Articles

Celtic 2 – 0 Cluj: Impressive performance sees Celtic go top of Group E
Odsonne Edouard celebrates opening the scoring.
Odsonne Edouard celebrates opening the scoring.
Stephen Halliday
Email
Published: 21:56 Thursday 03 October 2019
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/celtic-2-0-cluj-impressive-performance-sees-celtic-go-top-of-group-e-1-5017368
No Europa League victory can financially compensate Celtic for their failure to reach the Champions League group stage but this was an occasion when restoring pride was much more valuable to Neil Lennon and his players.

They avenged their elimination by Cluj from Europe’s premier tournament earlier in the season with an impressive and fully deserved win over the Romanian champions this time around.

Odsonne Edouard’s ninth goal of the season set them on their way before Mohamed Elyounoussi’s first goal for the club sealed all three points. It takes Celtic to the top of Group E after two rounds of fixtures and sets them up nicely for the visit of top seeds Lazio to Glasgow in three weeks’ time.

Edouard’s 20th minute breakthrough was no more than Celtic deserved for a forceful and vibrant start to the contest, although the striker’s French compatriot Christopher Jullien must have been left a little bemused that his was not the first name on the scoresheet.

The big defender brought a towering threat to a series of set pieces forced by the hosts in the early stages, his first headed attempt from close range brilliantly saved by Giedrius Arlauskis after a clever short corner routine which saw Callum McGregor create the chance.

Boli Bolingoli, not trusted to play at left-back when the teams met earlier in the season during what was a stuttering start to his Celtic career, has settled to his task well since then. The Belgian provided the next opportunity for Jullien who this time looped his header over from around eight yards.

The Cluj defence simply couldn’t get to grips with Jullien who next latched onto Ryan Christie’s cross from the left and saw another header blocked on the line.

Celtic were maintaining a tempo and intensity which suggested the opener was imminent and it duly arrived through a typically composed piece of finishing from Edouard.

McGregor’s threaded pass was gathered on the left by Bolingoli and his perfectly weighted cross was headed precisely by Edouard beyond the helpless Arlauskis from six yards.

Cluj had barely been able to venture out of their own half at this stage but five minutes later thought they had equalised. McGregor, having given the ball away cheaply, was booked for a foul on Mihai Bordeianu on the edge of the Celtic penalty area.

Ciprian Deac’s free-kick was unconvincingly parried by Fraser Forster, allowing the ball to find its way to Kevin Boli who bundled it home. The visitors’ celebrations were quickly muted by a tight but correct offside decision.

Cluj coach Dan Petrescu was well enough to take his place in the technical area, the former Chelsea man having called off from pre-match media duties on Wednesday evening because of illness.

He would have been more heartened by his team’s work as the first half progressed and they managed to disrupt some of Celtic’s momentum.
ce
How the Celtic players rated during Europa League victory over Cluj

Scott Brown tried to get his team back on the front foot with a surge forward from his holding midfield role and his shot from 22 yards rose just over.

But Cluj were now carrying a greater threat on the counter attack, although Mario Rondon was rightly booked for his risible attempt to win a penalty kick when he went down under no sort of challenge at all from Jullien three minutes before the interval.

Celtic appeared re-energised after the break and the ever lively Forrest came close to doubling their lead in the 49th minute when he dragged a shot narrowly wide after a weaving run into the Cluj penalty area.

Forrest is now very much a veteran of these contests as he closes in on a century of European appearances for Celtic and he was instrumental in the move which saw them make it 2-0 in the 59th minute.

Receiving the ball from Elyounoussi, he darted forward down the right and evaded a couple of challenges before laying the ball back into the path of the Norwegian midfielder. Elyounoussi enjoyed a significant slice of good fortune as his shot deflected off the back of Andrei Burca to completely wrong-foot Arlauskis but that did nothing to dilute the raucous celebrations of the Southampton loanee and the home support.

Forster made a fine reaction save to deny Deac as Cluj tried to locate a route back into the contest but Celtic were generally comfortable as they closed the game out. Christie came agonisingly close to adding a third for the hosts when he couldn’t get on the end of an inviting Elyounoussi cross but this was a night when Celtic’s sense of satisfaction was not defined by the margin of victory.

BBC

By Kheredine Idessane

BBC Scotland at Celtic Park

From the section Europa League

Odsonne Edouard scored his ninth goal of the season with a header in the 20th minute.
Odsonne Edouard's goal set Celtic on the road to a comfortable victory

Celtic climbed top of their Europa League group and went some way to avenging their shock Champions League exit to Cluj by convincingly beating the Romanians in Glasgow.

The Scottish champions were dumped out of the third qualifying round in August by Dan Petrescu's side, but Neil Lennon's men coasted to victory to follow up their draw in Rennes.

Odsonne Edouard started Celtic off in the first half before Mohamed Elyounoussi netted his first goal for the club after the break.

There was no real danger of a repeat of the shock that halted Celtic two months ago, despite Kevin Boli rightly having his effort for the visitors ruled out for offside with the game at 1-0.

Rennes' 2-1 defeat in Rome now means Neil Lennon's side go into the double header against Serie A giants Lazio, starting off in Glasgow in three weeks' time, in a strong position with a one-point lead.

'We have makings of a great side' – Lennon
Reaction & as it happened
How did you rate the players?

Celtic turn dominance into goals

Petrescu took unwell in Glasgow on the eve of the game and ducked out of his pre-match media commitments. Celtic wanted to make sure they did little to aid his recovery, and left him truly sick to his stomach with the way they set about this match.

Few in the stadium were surprised when Boli Bolingoli crossed delightfully on to the head of Edouard to send Celtic Park into a rapturous rendition of their favourite Stone Roses hit I wanna be adored, with the lyrics slightly adapted to I wanna be Edouard.

It left Cluj facing the music for failing to withstand the torrent. And I don't just mean the incessant rain that made the Celtic Park surface extra skiddy. When the Romanian champions came to town in mid August, a flat start from Celtic made life very comfortable for the visitors. Not the case at all this time around.

As the heavens opened, Celtic poured forward straight away, threatening to flood their opponents in a deluge of chances. Twice they could have scored earlier via the towering figure of defender Christopher Jullien but the Frenchman's first header was well saved and the second was wayward, sailing over the bar. James Forrest was played in but his delivery across goal had no takers.

There is no VAR in the Europa League but the officials were still quick to cut Boli's celebrations short by a flag for offside. The correct call, TV replays would later show. Try telling that to the Cluj players, who howled their protests at the German referee Daniel Siebert.

What Celtic craved was a second goal to turn their dominance into a more tangible advantage. Forrest almost provided it just after half-time but shot wide. But just when Cluj thought they had weathered the storm, Elyounoussi picked the right night to score his first goal for Celtic. On loan from Southampton, he started and finished a flowing move, albeit his shot spun past the keeper on the greasy surface after taking a huge deflection off a defender.

At the other end, they needed Fraser Forster to stay alert, and he did, tipping Billel Omrani's dangerous shot across his goal away from danger. Up the other end Celtic sprinted with Forrest skipping through the raindrops to bring another tidy save from the Cluj keeper.

Celtic's fans could have enjoyed their night even more. Ryan Christie was a whisker away from touching in a fine Elyounoussi cross while Edourd fired just over in the last few minutes as he sought a second, and a third for his team.

What a difference a few weeks make. Down and out of the Champions League after scoring three times against Cluj but conceding one more, this looks and feels like a different Celtic. Their aim is European football in the New Year. Two matches into the group, they've made promising progress down that road already.
Man of the match – Boli Bolingoli

There were several contenders in a Celtic shirt. Edouard was excellent up front, ably assisted by wide men Forrest and Elyounoussi. Brown, Christie and Callum McGregor rarely put a foot wrong in midfield. But I'm going further back in the team for my man of the match.

Last time Cluj were in town, Bolingoli was dropped after a very shaky start to his Celtic career and midfielder McGregor took his place against the Romanians. How he's grown into life in Scotland since. His pace down the left side caused Cluj problems all night and he provided a fine assist for the first goal.

His performance wasn't a total bed of roses, though. He still has a mistake in him and made a few here. But for his energy, enthusiasm, and willingness to work – added to the undoubted quality he possesses in the opponent's half – I'll give the Belgian full-back the man of the match award.
Match stats

Since losing to Cluj at Celtic Park in August, Celtic have remained unbeaten in their subsequent 11 games in all competitions (W9 D2)
This was Celtic's biggest European group stage win at home since beating Rennes 3-1 in the Europa League in November 2011
Four points is Celtic's joint-best start to a campaign in the Europa League since 2014-15
Cluj's starting XI had an average age of 30 years and 10 days; the third oldest in the Europa League this week
Odsonne Edouard has scored in five of his last six appearances at Celtic Park in all competitions.

#

Posted at

Match ends, Celtic 2, CFR Cluj 0.
Full Time
Posted at 90'+5'

Second Half ends, Celtic 2, CFR Cluj 0.
Posted at 90'+4'

Attempt missed. Juan Emmanuel Culio (CFR Cluj) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the left.
Substitution
Posted at 90'

Substitution, Celtic. Olivier Ntcham replaces Ryan Christie.
Posted at 89'

Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 89'

Foul by Mateo Susic (CFR Cluj).
Booking
Posted at 88'

Odsonne Edouard (Celtic) is shown the yellow card.
Posted at 88'

Offside, Celtic. Scott Brown tries a through ball, but Odsonne Edouard is caught offside.
Substitution
Posted at 86'

Substitution, Celtic. Jonny Hayes replaces James Forrest.
Posted at 85'

Attempt missed. Odsonne Edouard (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by James Forrest.
Posted at 84'

Attempt missed. Abdel Billel Omrani (CFR Cluj) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Ciprian Deac with a cross following a set piece situation.
Posted at 83'

Foul by Scott Brown (Celtic).
Posted at 83'

Catalin Golofca (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Posted at 83'

Corner, CFR Cluj. Conceded by Hatem Elhamed.
Substitution
Posted at 81'

Substitution, CFR Cluj. Catalin Golofca replaces Damjan Djokovic.
Posted at 81'

Attempt missed. Ryan Christie (Celtic) left footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo.
Posted at 80'

Callum McGregor (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 80'

Foul by Damjan Djokovic (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 75'

Offside, CFR Cluj. Alexandru Paun tries a through ball, but Ciprian Deac is caught offside.
Posted at 75'

Attempt blocked. Alexandru Paun (CFR Cluj) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Ciprian Deac.
Posted at 74'

Offside, Celtic. Mohamed Elyounoussi tries a through ball, but Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo is caught offside.
Posted at 72'

Offside, Celtic. Hatem Elhamed tries a through ball, but Christopher Jullien is caught offside.
Posted at 71'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Kevin Boli.
Posted at 70'

James Forrest (Celtic) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 70'

Foul by Mihai Bordeianu (CFR Cluj).
Substitution
Posted at 70'

Substitution, CFR Cluj. Alexandru Paun replaces Mario Rondón.
Posted at 66'

Offside, CFR Cluj. Abdel Billel Omrani tries a through ball, but Juan Emmanuel Culio is caught offside.
Posted at 65'

Attempt saved. James Forrest (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Mohamed Elyounoussi.
Posted at 64'

Attempt blocked. Camora (CFR Cluj) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Posted at 64'

Foul by Odsonne Edouard (Celtic).
Posted at 64'

Andrei Burca (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 64'

Attempt saved. Ciprian Deac (CFR Cluj) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Camora.
Goal!
Posted at 59'

Goal! Celtic 2, CFR Cluj 0. Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by James Forrest.
Posted at 58'

Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Posted at 58'

Foul by Mateo Susic (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 58'

Foul by Odsonne Edouard (Celtic).
Posted at 58'

Abdel Billel Omrani (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution
Posted at 57'

Substitution, CFR Cluj. Juan Emmanuel Culio replaces Luís Aurélio.
Posted at 56'

Attempt blocked. Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo (Celtic) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Posted at 56'

Attempt blocked. Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by James Forrest.
Posted at 56'

Attempt blocked. Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ryan Christie.
Posted at 54'

Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 54'

Foul by Mateo Susic (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 53'

Attempt blocked. Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Kristoffer Ajer.
Posted at 52'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Andrei Burca.
Booking
Posted at 51'

Damjan Djokovic (CFR Cluj) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Posted at 51'

James Forrest (Celtic) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 51'

Foul by Damjan Djokovic (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 47'

Attempt missed. Abdel Billel Omrani (CFR Cluj) left footed shot from the left side of the box is high and wide to the left.
Booking
Posted at 46'

Christopher Jullien (Celtic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Posted at 46'

Foul by Christopher Jullien (Celtic).
Posted at 46'

Mario Rondón (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Second Half
Posted at

Second Half begins Celtic 1, CFR Cluj 0.
Half Time
Posted at 45'+2'

First Half ends, Celtic 1, CFR Cluj 0.
Posted at 44'

Attempt saved. Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo (Celtic) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Odsonne Edouard.
Posted at 43'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Kevin Boli.
Booking
Posted at 42'

Mario Rondón (CFR Cluj) is shown the yellow card.
Posted at 42'

Mario Rondón (CFR Cluj) has gone down, but the referee deems it simulation.
Posted at 40'

Offside, Celtic. Odsonne Edouard tries a through ball, but Hatem Elhamed is caught offside.
Posted at 35'

Attempt blocked. Odsonne Edouard (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Scott Brown.
Posted at 33'

Attempt missed. Scott Brown (Celtic) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Odsonne Edouard.
Posted at 31'

Scott Brown (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 31'

Foul by Damjan Djokovic (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 29'

Foul by Mohamed Elyounoussi (Celtic).
Posted at 29'

Luís Aurélio (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 28'

Hand ball by Mihai Bordeianu (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 27'

Attempt missed. Ryan Christie (Celtic) left footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Mohamed Elyounoussi.
Posted at 26'

Offside, CFR Cluj. Mario Rondón tries a through ball, but Kevin Boli is caught offside.
Posted at 26'

Attempt missed. Mario Rondón (CFR Cluj) right footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the right following a set piece situation.
Posted at 26'

Attempt saved. Ciprian Deac (CFR Cluj) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
Booking
Posted at 25'

Callum McGregor (Celtic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Posted at 24'

Foul by Callum McGregor (Celtic).
Posted at 24'

Mihai Bordeianu (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Posted at 23'

Attempt missed. Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is too high.
Goal!
Posted at 20'

Goal! Celtic 1, CFR Cluj 0. Odsonne Edouard (Celtic) header from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo.
Posted at 20'

Hand ball by Mario Rondón (CFR Cluj).
Posted at 18'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Mateo Susic.
Posted at 18'

Attempt blocked. Christopher Jullien (Celtic) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ryan Christie with a cross.
Posted at 17'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Mateo Susic.
Posted at 14'

Foul by Ryan Christie (Celtic).
Posted at 14'

Mihai Bordeianu (CFR Cluj) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Posted at 12'

Corner, CFR Cluj. Conceded by Hatem Elhamed.
Posted at 12'

Attempt missed. Christopher Jullien (Celtic) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo following a corner.
Posted at 11'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Mateo Susic.
Posted at 11'

Attempt saved. Christopher Jullien (Celtic) header from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Callum McGregor with a cross.
Posted at 11'

Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Damjan Djokovic.
Posted at 6'

Corner, CFR Cluj. Conceded by Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo.
Posted at 5'

Hatem Elhamed (Celtic) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Posted at 5'

Foul by Damjan Djokovic (CFR Cluj).
Kick Off
Posted at

First Half begins.

Lineups are announced and players are warming up.

Celtic Football Club statement