| Match Pictures | Matches: 1998 – 1999 | 1998-1999 Pictures |
Trivia
- Injuries yet again took their toll in this game. A knee injury in the last game against Dundee Utd ruled Craig Burley out. Also unavailable were McNamara (knee surgery), Rieper (long term toe problem), McKinlay (hamstring), Healy (thigh strain), Viduka (ankle), and Riseth (called up and released for international duty).
- Ruud Krol had been interviewed for the post of Technical Director. Final decision on the appointment was expected at the end of June. Everybody assumed that Kenny Dalglish was a shoo-in for the position.
- After the game Dr Jo’s position was uncertain. The assumption had been that he would stand down and assume the new post of ‘European Technical Director / Advisor’ but there was no official announcement.
- This was the last games for Phil O’Donnell and Simon Donnelly who had signed pre-contract deals with Sheffield Wednesday. It was thought that it was also Alan Stubbs last game in the Hoops.
- In a post-match drug test, Alan Stubbs was told to consult his doctor, not that he failed the drugs test. This turned out to be an early warning of testicular cancer and Stubbs went to receive treatment.
Review
An anti-climax to an injury-riven season and one which ended trophy-less (unless you counted the Youths BP Cup), giving Rangers a treble season.
To all and sundry it looked like the good Doctor had taken his eye off the ball and got the tactics wrong.
The exclusion of Burchill seemed perplexing given his form in the last few games. With three subs only, Dr Jo chose to put a back up goalkeeper on the bench rather than an outfield player.
A long, depressing walk back to the City Centre.
Teams
Celtic:
Gould, Boyd, Mahe (O’Donnell, 78), Stubbs , Larsson, Wieghorst, Lambert, Annoni (Johnson, 60 ), Blinker, Moravcik, Mjallby
Subs not used Kerr
Bookings: Blinker ,Boyd ,Mjallby ,Wieghorst (Celtic)
Rangers:
Klos, Porrini (Kanchelskis, 77), Amoruso, Hendry, Vidmar, McCann (Ferguson, 67), McInnes, Van Bronckhorst, Wallace, Amato (Wilson, 89), Albertz
Goal: Wallace (48)
Bookings: Wallace (Rangers) Blinker ,Boyd ,Mjallby ,Wieghorst (Celtic)
Referee: H Dallas (Bonkle)
Attendance: 52,670
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Stats
| Celtic | Rangers | |
| Bookings | 4 | 1 |
| Fouls | 16 | 15 |
| Shots on Target | 7 | 4 |
| Corners | ||
| Offside | 1 | 2 |
Articles
BBC Match Report
It’s treble Advocaat
Scotland on Sunday 30/05/1999
Graham Spiers AT HAMPDEN
Celtic0 Rangers1
RANGERS completed their avowed feat of mopping-up all season 1998-99’s domestic trophies yesterday in a match in which they prospered and Celtic once more wilted. This Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park was never an exhilarating aria in terms of its football, but Dick Advocaat, the Rangers coach, can certainly sing in his bath of his accomplishments this term.
Rod Wallace, supposedly tracked by Enrico Annoni in a plan hatched by Jozef Venglos, sprang Rangers a goal after 48 minutes which Celtic were doomed never to equal. The Ibrox club weathered stern tests in patches of both halves but, save for some skirmishes around Stefan Klos which the German handled stoically, the winners never quite came under sustained siege by Celtic. In the 80th minute, indeed, Jonathan Gould pounced adroitly to his left to block a Gabriel Amato shot that would have made these closing 10 minutes irrelevant.
The match was a triumph for Rangers, certainly in the sense of Advocaat’s gritty resilience which transmits to his players, in his valued use of such players as Tony Vidmar, who yesterday played astutely, and in the way his team bounds forward through players such as Wallace, Jorg Albertz and Neil McCann. Long have been the waxing portraits produced of Celtic’s historically gallivanting style but this Rangers side of the Dutchman’s deserves every bit as much credit. Only the sixth treble in the Ibrox club’s history has come around through an attitude focused to attack, a policy Advocaat clearly relishes continuing, in announcing last night a two-year extension to his current contract.
In one solitary second in this game there was a moment of Celtic outcry, of injustice felt in the bloodstream, but it was flawed and quite mistaken.
In one of their impassioned bursts of assault, Paul Lambert’s shot cannoned against Lorenzo Amoruso, and the Celtic players mobbed Hugh Dallas, the referee, beseeching the penalty. Dallas, with some composure, withstood that unsightly buffeting, and television showed the ball clearly played the Italian’s chest.
Hence, this match was one more bitter chapter for the Celtic faithful to absorb, and the debate will now go on about the esteemed role of Jozef Venglos. Yesterday, Venglos omitted Mark Burchill completely, twinning Lubomir Moravcik with Henrik Larsson in attack, and playing Annoni in an unusual role, decisions that will inevitably come under attack. The Slovakian, it must be said, looked pallid and tired at the end of this, a sign that this essentially cultivated man isn’t one for the rancid headlines he assumed would follow.
The squall forever blowing up at the omission of Burchill is certainly odd, given that, firstly, more than a few astute, though less voluble observers, reserve doubts about his talents, and secondly, his replacement on the Celtic bench, Tommy Johnson, had scored three goals in three matches. If the fact remains that Venglos is probably more a football analyst than an enforcer, Celtic’s main hurt yesterday remained not tactics, but their loss of four players. There was also a lame performance from Larsson, a player whose feats this season have clearly left him jaded.
It might be doubted if Mark Viduka, one of those missing for Celtic, would have made any impression here. Such games are rarely lauded for their stalwart defensive duties, but in this match, a crop of rearguard figures deserved the laurels traditionally given to strikers. For Celtic, Johan Mjallby made thrusting, incisive tackles, despite being prohibitively booked as early as the 16th minute, and between Mjallby and Alan Stubbs, the buffeting style of Amato was manfully cordoned. Amato’s habit is to howl to the referee for himself being the victim of much hacking, but in this game, he was lucky not to be booked for a blatant dive after Tom Boyd had failed to touch him.
In these eulogies to defenders, nor can this match be allowed to pass without noting the bellowing hymn wafting off the Rangers support in repeated homage to Lorenzo Amoruso. It wasn’t one full winter ago, of course, since this memorably conceited Italian was being harangued at Ibrox for a style that mixed posing and dozing in equal measure. When the Rangers support, in fine unison yesterday, sang of there being “only one Amoruso”, you almost quaked at the dramatic sea-change in this man’s fortunes. One of the final sights of this occasion yesterday was this mad celebratory dance which Amoruso practices, a movement which must worry psychiatrists.
In the face of the excellence of both Stubbs and Mjallby, though, Celtic were pierced after 48 minutes. In his fluid formation, Venglos had tried Annoni in a man-marking role on Wallace, a tactic that ended with the Italian trudging off after 61 minutes. Thirteen minutes earlier, strategy had nothing to do with Wallace’s strike: Vidmar’s cross met the boot of McCann, whose shot was blocked, and when the ball broke to Wallace, he belted it past Gould. Whatever the cruel fates they felt were strewn across this match, Celtic could do no more than tear at Rangers in the second period. From Boyd’s cross, Larsson couldn’t have known the time and space he had for his header, and the chance was lost. From a double-salvo from Stubbs from 18 yards, Colin Hendry was waylaid by the first, and Klos bravely stood his ground to fist the second. Johnson’s shot then looped tantalisingly wide of the post as Rangers weathered whatever Celtic threw at them.
If this is big Stubbs’s last match for Celtic, his career in Scotland should not go neglected. Yesterday he was full of spirit, brave, and hungrily assaulting this game, but Celtic, ultimately, needed more cultured gifts yesterday.
Player Ratings:
Jonathan Gould (7) – The big Englishman turned in another accomplished display between the sticks and made some important stops towards the end of the first half. Never put a foot wrong. His kick-outs from pass backs nearly always found a Celtic man.
Tom Boyd (8) – The skipper didn’t deserve to be on the losing side on Saturday afternoon. Boyd did an excellent man-marking job on Neil McCann and was an inspiration. Defended comfortably and put in some saving tackles
Alan Stubbs (7) – One of Celtic’s better players, the big defender will be disappointed to end his career on such a low note. Stubbs mopped up almost everything at the back and came close to getting himself on the scoresheet from set pieces a few times. A towering figure in the Celtic defence.
Johan Mjallby (6) – Had a fascinating duel with Amato, with honours just about even after the 90 minutes.
However, he won’t fancy watching too many replays of the incident when the Argentine stitched him up with an outrageous piece of skill on the touchline. He was booked as early as the 15th minute but was not put off his game. Needed to get forward more.
Stephane Mahe (6) – A sinner the last time the teams met, the Frenchman was on his best behaviour at Hampden. Didn’t do much wrong and defended reasonably well before being replaced by Phil O’Donnell. Considering the amount of pressure he was under performed reasonably well. Needed to get forward more.
Morten Weighorst (5) – Handed an unfamiliar slot on the right-hand side of midfield, the role soon looked alien to the big Dane, who contributed nothing in either defence or attack. Had to work his socks off just to counter the runs from Vidmar, Albertz and Wallace.
Enrico Annoni (6) – The Italian was handed the task of stifling Rod Wallace and did his job reasonably well though he seemed to take time to adjust to the pace of the game and was left for dead a few times by the man he was supposed to be marking. However, pace has always been the former Roma defender’s Achilles heel and it was cruelly exposed a few times in the wide open spaces of Hampden. Replaced by Tommy Johnson on the hour mark.
Paul Lambert (7) – Celtic’s best player. Outplayed van Bronckhorst in the middle of the park. Unlucky not to open the scoring at the new national stadium when his 30-yard effort came crashing back off the crossbar in the first half. Rarely wastes a pass and is one of the few Scots who could walk into any English Premiership side.
Regi Blinker (4) – Unpredictable as ever and unable to get much change out of McInnes. Lucky not to be red-carded for a two- footed lunge on McInnes, the little Dutchman was a passenger for the entire match. The occasion seemed too much for him and he was largely anonymous, poor first 45, better in the second.
Lubomir Moravcik (5) – Starting only his second game after a four-month absence with a hamstring injury, the Slovak didn’t even look half fit. Playing in a free role behind Larsson, he never really got into the game and was a major disappointment. Well marked by McInnes. Looked more sharp as the game continued.
Henrik Larsson (6) – Scotland’s Player of the Year gave his all but just couldn’t find a way past Hendry and Amoruso. Had little support up front and the burden of carrying Celtic almost single-handedly for much of the season finally took its toll. The fact that Amoruso won the early exchanges between the two was an indicator of what was to come.
SUBS –
Phil O’Donnell (3) – Couldn’t force his way into the match when he replaced Stephane Mahe, O’Donnell’s Parkhead career ended on a low note before his summer move to Sheffield Wednesday.
Tommy Johnson (3) – Preferred instead of young Mark Burchill, the striker was hardly noticed when he came on for Annoni although he worked hard got little return from the Rangers defence.
Key Incidents:
| 21 minutes | Celtic pile forward to the edge of the Rangers penalty area. The ball finds itself at Paul Lambert’s feet 20 yards from the goal and the midfielder lets fly with a shot that beats Stefan Klos all ends up but clips the bar on the way over. |
| 27 minutes | Derek McInnes wins a tussle in midfield and the ball squirts 20 yards into the path of Enrico Annoni and Rod Wallace. The Italian has a start but the Englishman’s pace gets him to the ball first. Just as he prepares to shoot Jonathan Gould rushes from his line and blocks bravely at his feet. |
| 33 minutes | Lorenzo Amoruso launches a long diagonal ball to Jorg Albertz out on the left. The German whips over a near-post cross for Neil McCann but Tom Boyd makes a goal-saving block. |
| 35 minutes | A huge punt from Gould puts Amoruso under pressure from Henrik Larsson, who benefits from the defender’s slip then beats Colin Hendry before being foiled by Klos, who reacts quickly to claw the ball away. |
| 45 minutes | Neil McCann finds space on left to throw in a cross which is headed out to the edge of the box by Regi Blinker. McInnes is lurking and sees the chance to give his side the lead at half- time but snatches at his shot and sends it soaring over the bar. |
| 48 minutes | Tony Vidmar races down the left before firing a low cross across goal. McCann takes a swipe but ******* his shot into the path of Wallace who calmly sticks the ball behind Gould from six yards to give Rangers the lead. |
| 61 minutes | Blinker cross from the left finds its way to the far post where Morten Wieghorst is left unmarked with enough time to take a touch before firing a right- foot shot which is brilliantly turned away by Klos. |
| 65 minutes | Celtic are camped on the edge of the Rangers box and Alan Stubbs lets fly with a shot that poleaxes Hendry before dropping at the Scouser’s feet again. This time he is left holding his head in his hands as Klos reacts superbly to palm his efforts to safety. |
| 81 minutes | Rangers blow a great chance to make the game safe. Albertz races down the left and slips the ball inside to Gabriel Amato, who only has Gould to beat but is denied by the keeper low to his left |
| 87 minutes | Celtic go all out for the equaliser and have a huge penalty appeal waved aside by Hugh Dallas when Lambert crashes a shot off Amoruso. Television shows that the referee got it 100 per cent right. |
- Managers Comments
Jo Venglos post match:
“I do not have to defend myself. We tried to do our best and I think during the season the team tried to give everything
“Today I think we were not the worst team. We had our problems especially with injuries. We had the problem with Vidar but the players who played felt OK.
“Football is sometimes like that.
” I have no regrets about not playing Mark in the final. If you saw how the game was running, there were so many bodies in front of the penalty area it was not for counter-attacking players or those who run at opponents. It was not his game.
“There were seven other players left out and I could not speak to all of them.
“Maybe if we had been allowed more substitutes he would have been on the bench. Maybe the cup organisers should allow more players on the bench.
“I am never satisfied, but it was a difficult season. We have a very good team with good players, but nobody can take seve or eight regular players out of a team and hope to win. Next season we will be successful.”
“When I came here I made an agreement and I am an easy going coach. I am not too easy leaving and I know that we have quality players and I know we will win.
“There are two things for us to consider before next season. We need to bring in new players, but also I hope players like Burley, McNamara, Rieper and Johnson are fully fit. That is very important.”
Phil O’Donnell:
“It was good just to be involved because I hadn’t expected to be stripped.
“I was resigned to the fact that our match at Dunfermline three weeks ago had been my last in a Celtic jersey.
“I felt for Sid at being left out but it wasn’t just him. Tosh McKinlay, Harald Brattbakk and Mark Burchill would have felt just as bad.
“I know just how bad that feels. When we won the Coca-Cola Cup last season I missed the final through injury after playing in every round leading up to it.
“It was an emotional time for me but losing this game overtook everything. When I finally went on all I was hoping for was to get that goal we needed.
“We had loads of possession in that last half-hour and put Rangers under pressure, but the equaliser just wouldn’t come.
“Ultimately we just couldn’t get the wee break we needed. There were a few scrambles and their goalkeeper had a few good saves.
“It wasn’t a classic final. The play was a bit scrappy but that was almost to be expected.
“Both sets of players were under a lot of pressure after what had happened in the previous game and that made it a tense affair.
“It was the sort of match in which one goal was always likely to be enough. Unfortunately for us, it was Rangers who got it.
“Paul Lambert was unlucky when he hit the bar in the first half – a couple of inches lower and that would have been a great goal.
“Neither team played flowing football, though.”
Dick Advocaat:
“It was quite a close game with not many chances. Celtic had to take a few risks in the last 15 minutes and had some opportunities to equalise, but we should already have been 2-0 up. Over the 90 minutes, Rangers deserved to win.
Celtic 0-1 Rangers [BBC]
Rangers won the first Old Firm Scottish Cup final in 10 years, giving them a sixth domestic treble and denying Celtic a single trophy in a painful season for the Parkhead club.
The Bhoys will consider themselves unlucky, after creating a number of chances. But striker Henrik Larsson had a rare off day and the Rangers defence held firm with Colin Hendry playing through the pain of a groin injury and Lorenzo Amoruso winning the man of the match award.
Equally importantly for Scottish football, the game passed off without major incident or controversy following the scenes the last time the two clubs met, 27 days earlier. All eyes were on referee Hugh Dallas and the players after the league game at Parkhead saw three dismissals, a missile thrown at the official and public order problems around Glasgow. Perhaps as a result the match started in a subdued atmosphere and the first shot – from Celtic – did not arrive until the 14th minute.
A pattern of the side in green and white enjoying more of the ball with Rangers looking to break was set at this early stage. On 16 minutes a Neil McCann run was checked by Johan Mjallby, who was booked before Jorg Albertz wasted the free kick.
Tempers briefly flare
Two minutes later promises of good behaviour were forgotten for a split second as another unnecessary foul was committed by Lubomir Moravcik on the edge of the area.
Amoruso received a strict lecture from referee Dallas as the heat increased within the rebuilt Hampden Park. Rangers came closer with this free kick but not as close as Celtic’s Paul Lambert two minutes later, He hit the woodwork from almost 30 yards out before the Gers’ best chance of the half was wasted by Wallace. The striker’s control let him down after he had run clear and Jon Gould pounced to deny the former Leeds player.
Rangers take lead
The second half started with Rangers by far the sharper, and within four minutes of the restart Wallace had given them the lead. A ball was played into the Celtic box, which McCann managed to turn behind Wallace’s man-marker Annoni. The Englishman was six yards out with Gould to beat, and he made no mistake to score his 27th of a productive first season in Scotland.
Jo Venglos’s side looked like they needed a change, and the Celtic coach turned to another former Aston Villa man in a bid to provide Henrik Larsen with more support up front. Tommy Johnson, whose time ijn Glasgow has been badly disrupted by injuries, came on for Annoni. He did not make an immediate impact although by the hour mark Celtic were looking more likely to score, with Rangers still happy to soak up pressure.
Half chances
Morten Wieghorst, Stephane Mahe and Alan Stubbs all had half chances saved by Klos. Johnson also saw an effort deflected just wide with 17 minutes of normal time remaining.
The pressure was starting to build with Rangers unable to get the ball out of their half, particularly after McCann went off injured. Andrei Kanchelskis came on after 77 minutes, presumably to help Rangers keep the ball when they broke. And they had a chance to finish it when Albertz ran down the left after 81 minutes, but Gabriel Amato’s effort was saved superbly by Gould. With three minutes to go a number of shots from the edge of the Rangers area were charged down and Amoruso eventually deflected Lambert’s long range effort wide. Celtic’s fans at the same end of stadium howled for a penalty but replays showed the ball came off the Italian’s chest for a corner. Referee Dallas had got a crucial decision right, and it turned out to be Celtic’s final real chance of a dispiriting afternoon, despite almost five minutes of injury time.
Rangers: Klos, Porrini, Hendry, Amoruso, Vidmar, McCann, McInnes, Van Bronckhorst, Wallace, Amato, Albertz. Subs: Ferguson, Wilson, Kanchelskis.
Celtic: Gould, Boyd, Mahe, Stubbs, Larsson, Wieghorst, Lambert, Annoni, Blinker, Moravcik, Mjallby. Subs: O’Donnell, Johnson, Kerr.
Referee: H Dallas (Motherwell)