| Match Pictures | Matches: 2019 – 2020 | 2019-20 Pictures |
Trivia
- Europa League – Round of 32 – 1st Leg
- UEFA Cup, 1st Leg
Celtic going into the match actually favourites as finished top of group, beating Rennes, Cluj & Lazio. - VaR in use: First ever use of VAR for Celtic, goes against Celtic. Penalty given to Copenhagen. Celtic became the first Scottish side ever to be sanctioned by a VAR decision during their 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Europa League last 32 tie.
- Christie out for the next game.
- And the Glasgow Celtic will be there… Magnificent support from the travelling Celts yesterday!
- Kobenhavens Politi paper made bad mistake in twitter: See below for comical first post praising Celtic fans ("it's been great having you gays [sic!] in town")
- Sevco won their game 3-2 v Braga, despite having been 2-0 down.
- Police & everyone very happy with Celtic fans behaviour all was very good
- Women's league starts again for new season, major day as start of professional side for Celtic Women's team, they win 2-1 v Glasgow City (reigning champs. Wish them the best.
- UEFA Cup: Celtic season ticket-holders charged £37 to watch match v Copenhagen in last 32 of the UEFA Europa League in a little over two months' time. All supporters are very angry, and find this excessive
- Lyon have issued a hands-off warning to clubs interested in striker Moussa Dembele.
- Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in use for this match, first competitive match for Celtic this has been in use (used once before for Celtic in friendly match last summer).
- Former Manchester U and N Ireland goalkeeper Harry Gregg, hailed as a hero of the 1958 Munich air disaster, has died at the age of 87. RIP. Gregg bravely rescued team-mates and other passengers following the plane crash in which 23 were killed. RIP
- BBC have revealed pundit Michael Stewart will not be back on any of its programming unless they are satisfied that they won't see another breach of editorial guidelines from the former Hearts and Hibs midfielder. He is in the right in this one, and there is strong support (outwith of Ibrox) for his return.
- Rugby: Scotland defeat Italy 17-0. France beat Wales 27-23
Review
– it’s been great having you guys in town – no registered problems during the night. We wish you a safe journey
At half time wanted them pumped after full time will take that. First half they played 4-4-2 with full backs behind the midfield and we won that. Second they went narrow with the 4 in the middle and one of the full back went into midfield and overlapped the narrow four depending what side the ball was on and they played a kind of 3-5-2 at times and we lost the space and time we had in midfield. After saying that, they huffed and puffed but anything they got was our own fault, despite a poorer second half we still had more of the chances, penalty aside.
Fraser Forster is a legend.
the encouraging thing was going away from home and although under a fair bit of pressure in second half, only gave up one goal.
That added to the fact that we are used to seeing maybe one or two clear cut chances, away from home – then recent form shows we are getting used to the counter style football you need in europe.
Edouard was excellent, i really never thought he could hold the ball up and wait for players to come and help.
I was also shocked at the amount of long balls played up field immediately. It took them by surprise and created chances, especially in first 10 mins.
yes- we could have scored more, but away goals are always helpful and we should be able to beat them if we play to a high standard as we have done recently.
Teams
FC Copenhagen
- 21Johnsson
- 2Varela
- 25Nelsson
- 27R Sigurdsson Substituted forPapagiannopoulosat 86'minutes
- 19OviedoBooked at 49mins Substituted forBengtssonat 73'minutes
- 16Biel
- 6Stage
- 10Gonçalves Rodrigues
- 33Falk Jensen
- 14N'Doye
- 18Santos Substituted forKaufmannat 73'minutes
- 3Bengtsson
- 4Papagiannopoulos
- 8Thomsen
- 11Daramy
- 13Grytebust
- 17Bartolec
- 29Kaufmann
- N'Doye (52' minutes)
Celtic
- 67Forster
- 30Frimpong Substituted forSimunovicat 84'minutes
- 2Jullien
- 35Ajer
- 15Hayes
- 21Ntcham Substituted forElyounoussiat 60'minutes
- 8BrownBooked at 68minsSubstituted forBittonat 73'minutesBooked at 83mins
- 42McGregor
- 17ChristieBooked at 78mins
- 22Edouard
- 49Forrest
- 5Simunovic
- 6Bitton
- 10Bayo
- 18Rogic
- 23Bolingoli-Mbombo
- 27Elyounoussi
- 29Bain
- Edouard (14' minutes)
Articles
- Match Report (see end of page below)
Pictures
Forum
MOTM
- Voting Thread
- Result Thread
- Winner –
Stats
FC CopenhagenAway TeamCeltic
Possession
Home56%
Away44%
Shots
Home7
Away15
Shots on Target
Home2
Away7
Corners
Home4
Away3
Fouls
Home10
Away7
Articles
FC Copenhagen 1 – 1 Celtic: Game of two halves as Lennon's men get away goal – VAR used to award penalty
Celtic celebrate Odsonne Edouard's goal. Picture: Getty
Celtic celebrate Odsonne Edouard's goal. Picture: Getty
Stephen Halliday
Email
Published: 19:53 Thursday 20 February 2020
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/fc-copenhagen-1-1-celtic-game-of-two-halves-as-lennon-s-men-get-away-goal-var-used-to-award-penalty-1-5093694Celtic survived being the first Scottish club to undergo trial by television as Fraser Forster’s heroics left them in pole position to reach the last 16 of the Europa League.
The introduction of VAR to the competition saw Copenhagen dramatically awarded a penalty kick with 11 minutes remaining of a compelling first leg of the last 32 tie.
With the teams level at 1-1, Ryan Christie was sanctioned for a handball not immediately seen by the referee, collecting a booking in the process which means he will miss next week’s second leg at Celtic Park through suspension.
But the Scottish champions avoided a defeat which was have been extremely harsh on the balance of play when penalty specialist Forster saved Jens Stage’s spot kick.
A draw was the least Celtic deserved. They should have had more than Odsonne Edouard’s opener to show for their efforts, although Copenhagen improved after the break as they levelled through Dame N’Doye.
If the Copenhagen defence had been fully briefed beforehand on the potential danger posed by Edouard, they clearly didn’t pay sufficiently close attention.
They simply couldn’t cope with the pace, power and intelligent movement of Celtic’s top scorer as he ran them ragged from the opening exchanges.
Before he gave Neil Lennon’s side the early breakthrough their purposeful start fully merited, Edouard passed up a couple of arguably easier opportunities to score.
There were barely 20 seconds on the clock inside the smart and atmospheric Parken Stadium when he was presented with his first sight of goal. Christie, back in the starting line-up on the right side of the advanced midfield trio, surged forward and picked out Edouard’s run in behind the Copenhagen central defenders.
He looked the odds-on favourite in a one-on-one with goalkeeper Karl-Johan Johnsson but his shot was saved by the Swedish international before Victor Nelsson slid in to block the follow-up effort.
In the fourth minute, Copenhagen were cut open again. This time it was James Forrest, starting the evening on the left, who found Edouard. Again, he was denied by Johnsson who also reacted smartly to keep out Olivier Ntcham’s shot from the rebound.
There was a brief moment of concern for Celtic at the other end a minute later when N’Doye muscled his way into their penalty area but Kristoffer Ajer was able to do enough to prevent the Senegalese striker getting a clean shot away.
Celtic were soon back in control and it was no surprise when they fashioned another chance for Edouard in the 14th minute. It was a case of third time lucky for the Frenchman. His earlier misses had clearly done nothing to damage his confidence as he produced a sublime finish, dinking the ball over Johnsson from around 10 yards after Christie and Callum McGregor had linked up smartly to play him in.
Odsonne Edouard netted a sublime chip to put Celtic ahead. Picture: Getty
'£25m+ Edouard', 'Lennon's frustration'…
Edouard looked poised to have another clear sight of goal four minutes later but this time a finely timed challenge in the penalty area by Copenhagen captain Carlos Zeca ensured the hosts did not fall further behind.
Stale Solbakken’s side gradually steadied the ship and while Celtic continued to dominate in terms of possession, there was some encouragement for the defiantly noisy home support when Bryan Oviedo got on the end of a sweeping move. The former Everton man might have done better than curl his shot wide of Forster’s left hand post.
The Celtic goalkeeper did not have a save to make in a highly satisfying first half for the visitors but he was beaten just seven minutes after the restart as Copenhagen began to perform with far greater intensity.and tempo.
Their reward was N’Doye’s equaliser which was nonetheless eminently preventable from Celtic’s perspective. Ntcham was punished for dallying needlessly in possession just outside his own penalty area, Copenhagen seizing the ball as Rasmus Falk threaded a pass to N’Doye inside the box. The veteran front man showed all his experience to guide home a composed finish via the inside of Forster’s right hand post.
Celtic’s response to the setback was positive and after Forrest, now on the right, saw a shot blocked, they wasted a promising opportunity to regain the lead when McGregor was guilty of unusually poor decision making when he blazed over from the edge of the box when he should have slipped the ball to the unmarked Edouard.
Yet another chance did come Edouard’s way in the 71st minute when he was picked out by Jonny Hayes’ low cross from the left but his first time shot from close range was brilliantly saved by the impressive Johnsson.
Celtic captain Scott Brown, booked for a cynical foul on Zeca, limped off injured and was replaced by Nir Bitton as an increasingly end-to-end contest entered the closing stages.
Just at it seemed the much hyped involvement of VAR would play no significant part in proceedings, Russian referee Sergei Karasev was invited to review the penalty claim for handball against Christie.
The spot-kick was duly awarded but Celtic were spared from a technology-aided defeat when Forster threw himself low to his right to touch Stage’s effort against a post before the ball was scrambled to safety.
COPENHAGEN: Johnsson, Varela, Nelsson, Sigurdsson (Papagiannopoulos 86), Oviedo (Bengtsson 73); Biel, Stage, Zeca, Falk; N’Doye, Santos (Kaufmann 73). Subs not used: Grytebust, Thomsen, Daramy, Bartolec.
CELTIC: Forster, Frimpong (Simunovic 83), Ajer, Jullien, Hayes; Brown (Bitton 73), McGregor; Christie. Ntcham (Elyounoussi 60), Forrest; Edouard. Subs not used: Bain, Bayo, Rogic, Bolingoli.
By Kheredine Idessane
BBC Scotland in Copenhagen
From the section Europa League
Odsonne Edouard
Odsonne Edouard was denied twice before opening the scoring
Fraser Forster's dramatic late penalty save ensured Celtic's away goal gives them a narrow advantage after their Europa League last-32 stalemate in Copenhagen.
Odsonne Edouard earned Neil Lennon's team a deserved lead in the first leg before the hosts launched a second-half surge.
Dame N'Doye levelled before Forster acrobatically denied Jens Stage from the spot after a VAR penalty check.
The return is in Glasgow next Thursday.
Edouard's 24th strike of the season was the first away goal Celtic have scored in the knockout stage of a European competition since Henrik Larsson's winner against Boavista in 2003.
Lennon's side had to grind out large spells of the second half, but he will be frustrated his team only went into half-time just one goal to the good as Edouard had two one-on-one efforts saved by Karl-Johan Johnsson.
Reaction & as it happened
'We could have score more' – Lennon
Early blitz fails to offer killer finish for Celtic
First impressions can be so deceptive. It took all of 25 seconds in the Parken Stadium for the apparent direction of travel to be established in this match and arguably the tie.
When Edouard was played in behind the Copenhagen defence inside the first minute, anyone who has watched him banging in the goals for fun this season was expecting the net to bulge. Only a fine save from Johnsson denied him.
Within the first three minutes, the goalkeeper had already laid down solid credentials for a man-of-the-match award. Another fine block to deny the rampaging Edouard and a follow-up save to keep out the Frenchman's compatriot Olivier Ntcham thrust him into the thick of the action.
Hurricane Edouard was at the forefront of Storm Celtic. How long could Copenhagen weather the waves of yellow and green? The answer was 14 minutes.
A flowing move was started by a pass out of defence from Christopher Jullien. Ryan Christie and James Forrest were then involved before the goal was sumptuously scored by Edouard with the deftest of delicate chips over the advancing keeper.
Nearly 4,000 Celtic fans celebrated wildly and urged their side to keep up the pressure. Another fine move shortly after the goal sent Forrest scampering towards the penalty area but he pulled his shot wide.
It was too early to suggest it was game over, but rarely will Celtic have enjoyed a more comfortable first 45 minutes away from home in the latter stages of European competition. Would they be made to pay a price for their profligacy? Within seven minutes of the restart, Copenhagen delivered their answer.
Ntcham dallied needlessly outside his own area, the ball was fed to N'Doye and from around 10 yards, on an angle, his finish was true off the inside of Forster's right-hand post. Suddenly the home side were level and totally re-energised.
Callum McGregor then blasted over from just outside the box when he had Christie to his right and Edouard to his left, Copenhagen's cover stretched to the limit. Had his decision making been better, Celtic's lead would surely have been restored.
A game the visitors had in the palm of their hand was all of a sudden up for grabs. The ebb and flow made for compulsive viewing but still the chances mainly fell Celtic's way. A Christie cross almost made its way straight into the net. A break involving Christie and Jonny Hayes then set up Edouard. His fourth big chance of the game – an instinctive first-time toe-poke – brought out the third big save from Johnsson.
The feeling that things may slip away from Celtic grew when captain Scott Brown went off injured, replaced by Nir Bitton.
Another substitute, Mikkel Kaufmann, caused big problems instantly when he came on for Copenhagen. Drawing a fine block from Jullien when played into the area, then winning the corner from which the game's major talking point emerged.
Celtic's first encounter with the Video Assistant Referee went against them – a penalty awarded for handball by Christie who will now miss the second leg due to his booking – as he jumped with his arm out in an aerial joust. The spot-kick taken by Stage was tipped brilliantly on to his right-hand post by Forster.
It was remarkable, given the first half, that Celtic were now clinging on to a draw. A late chance for Forrest that he squandered from a tight angle could have changed the narrative once more.
So Celtic fail to win a match for the first time this year, despite their numerous chances. The positive thing from their point of view? They have 90 minutes in Glasgow in front of their home fans to secure safe passage to the last 16.
They could have made the return leg all but a formality. Instead, their fate still hangs in the balance.
BBC Odsonne Edouard graphic
Celtic's away knockout wait continues – statistics
Celtic are without a win in 10 knockout stage away games in major European competition (D2 L8), since beating Boavista 1-0 in the 2002-03 UEFA Cup semi-final.
Copenhagen have won just one of their last eight Europa League home games (D3 L4 – excluding qualifiers), beating FC Lugano 1-0 on MD1 of this season's campaign.
Celtic have registered just one clean sheet in their last 10 European games (excluding qualifiers).
Odsonne Edouard has been directly involved in four goals in his last four Europa League appearances for Celtic (2 goals, 2 assists), after managing just two (2 goals) in his previous 10 for the club.
From the section Celtic
Neil Lennon says he is disappointed Celtic did not put their Europa League tie to bed.
Manager Neil Lennon said he was "disappointed" Celtic left Denmark with just one away goal after battling to a 1-1 Europa League draw in Copenhagen.
Odsonne Edouard's 24th strike this season was one of four chances for the Frenchman in the last-32 first leg.
Callum McGregor and James Forrest also spurned clear openings for the Scottish champions.
"Going in 1-0 at half-time I felt we could've been two or three up", said Lennon.
"I thought we had good control of the first half. We gave away a poor goal from our point of view and it gave Copenhagen a huge lift psychologically.
"I felt on the counter attack we had great chances in the second half as well, so I'm disappointed we haven't come away with more goals."
Forster penalty save clinches draw for Celtic
Reaction & as it happened
Although Lennon lamented the missed chances, his side could easily be heading into next week's second leg without their narrow away-goal advantage.
Dame N'Doye levelled the game seven minutes into the second half with Fraser Forster then saving Jens Stage's late penalty after a VAR check ruled Ryan Christie to have handballed in the box.
The fingertip stop is the the latest in a long list of vital interventions from the Southampton loanee in Celtic's Europa League run this season, and Lennon was understandably full of praise for the keeper.
"He's brilliant, but that's down to the work him and Stevie Woods do behind the scenes", said Lennon.
"He's made a magnificent save."
With a crucial run of fixtures coming, the Celtic manager will be concerned about the fitness of his captain Scott Brown, who was substituted with 73 minutes to go.
Lennon added: "We lost Brown with a calf strain, so we'll have to see how that is."