Match Pictures | Matches: 2021 – 2022
Trivia
- League Cup; Semi final KO: 17:15 Saturday; BT Sport
- Forrest comes off the bench to score the winner to take Celtic to a cup final.
- Incredibly, Hibs defeated Sevco 3-1 in the other semi-final (leading 3-0 at one point in the first half
- Out injured and missing today’s game: Giorgos Giakoumakis will be out for at least another week with a knee injury. Match too soon for Carl Starfelt & Tom Rogic.
- Back after another long international break! Scotland defeat both Moldova & Denmark 2-0 so will be seeded for World Cup playoffs.
- Bertie Auld – Lisbon Lion & Celtic’s greatest supporter passed away, RIP. Celtic wear no. 10 on their shorts as tribute in his honour. Big display and banner in his honour. Minutes applause also held for him.
- Both Hibs & Celtic are sidese that Bertie Auld had played for, and Bertie Auld had also managed Hibs too for a couple of years. The final was being dubbed unofficially in his honour as ‘The Bertie Auld Final’.
- Big pyro tribute banner & lights display for Bertie Auld. RIP.
- Former Celt Frank McCarron passed away, RIP
- Ex Celt John Hughes is new manager of Dunfermline. Good luck.
- “There will be some activity” in the January transfer window from Celtic, Ange Postecoglou has confirmed.
- Tony Ralston was not picked for Scotland squad which irked some Celtic fans but then got called up for second match after match suspension for Sevco’s Patterson. He won the his first cap top subbed on late. Incredible turnaround to his career!
- Sevco manager Stevie Gerrard walked out to move to Aston Villa in very sudden move. To rub it into the Sevco support he left on Remembrance Day! Giovanni van Bronkhorst is announced as new manager, and loses his first match in charge to Hibs.
- Former Celtic managerial target Eddie Howe confirmed as new Newcastle boss. Eddie Howe on Celtic: “I didn’t change my mind. I couldn’t get my backroom team together to go to Celtic and I didn’t want to take a job of such size on my own. I knew what was needed. I was open and honest. Celtic were absolutely brilliant. No problems with Celtic whatsoever.”
- The Sun newspaper claim the Green Brigade were planning to disrupt the COP 26 global meetings “after infiltrating a communist group”! A load of devious cheap shot nonsense no truth at all, fantasy nonsense pandering to the lowest elements.
- Ange Postecoglou named as October’s SP Manager of Month. His first “award” with Celtic.
- Paris St Germain ladies team midfielder Aminata Diallo arrested in connection with an alleged attack on one of her team-mates!!!! Ladies game getting very serious!
- Football Linesman & Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross referred himself to the standards commissioner at Westminster after revealed he had undeclared earnings as an MSP and football official of £30k!
- Cricket T20: Australia beat NZ to win world cup T20.
- Terror attack outside a Liverpool hospital.
- Celtic AGM completed. A ship wreck for the board. All board members reinstated due to block shareholding, but votes against by Celtic trust went against them.
Summary
“It’s going to be a struggle, it’s going to be an arm-wrestle, it’s going to be competitive.” Ange Postecoglou
Ange: “My view on referees has been consistent since day one. No one has heard me mention a referee after a game. If I feel the need, or there’s something to be said, then I’ll always protect the interests of this football club.
Post match:
Ange “Pleased for the players, staff & fans. Tough game but thought we deserved to win. St J make it hard for every team. We had to be disciplined. The players are starting to get real belief in how we want to play. Delighted for James now he’s fit as he’s a quality player”
James Forrest “Coming on to help the team, I’m glad I got a chance and contributed. I’m delighted with that!”
NutsAC of KDS forum: Decent result and great to be back in a final. Performance was pretty average, I thought Ralston, Juranovic and Turnbull were very poor. We need someone with physicality, creativity and pace in CM as Turnbull and Rogic don’t provide that.
The worrying thing is that we always give our opponents a couple of chances to score, no matter who we play. Is Julien supposed to be back soon? If not then I think we need a tall, commanding CB as we don’t have one at the moment.
Onto the final we go, hopefully we tighten up this passing about the back soon as it’s going to cost us if we don’t.
Will be interesting to see who we bring in come January, we definitely need more options in a variety of positions
Twitter:
@bhoys analytics: Through to the final which is all that matters at the moment. Puts more pressure on the next semi final.Need to look at how Davidson twice now and Martindale stopped Celtic creating and think of a way around it.
@krys: Refereeing was abysmal in that game. Booked things that didn’t deserve it, didn’t book things that did, missed the severity of Rooney’s elbow on Welsh, and just made up added on time at the end of each half. He stopped us attacking first half, let St Johnstone attack second half!
Various: The 67th minute tribute to Bertie was amazing. I know folk hate pyro, I know why in some cases too, but that was outstanding to see.
@btw: Result. Felt harder than it needed to be. Proved that parking the bus isn’t a silver bullet against this side but we are going to need to be a bit more imaginative than this as the season progresses. Still learning and growing together and fuck me what a player Jota is
@Hp: If Nick Walsh is the standard that referees need to reach in Scotland, the game is gubbed .
Teams
Celtic:
Formation 4-3-3
- 15Hart
- 56Ralston
- 20Carter-Vickers
- 57Welsh
- Substituted forMcCarthyat 78′minutes
- 88Juranovic
- 14TurnbullBooked at 83mins
- Substituted forSoroat 90+2′minutes
- 6BittonBooked at 14mins
- 42McGregor
- 11Abada
- Substituted forForrestat 69′minutes
- 8FuruhashiBooked at 56mins
- Substituted forAjetiat 90+2′minutes
- 17Neves Filipe
- Substituted forJohnstonat 90+2′minutes
Substitutes
- 5Scales
- 10Ajeti
- 12Soro
- 16McCarthy
- 19Johnston
- 26Urhoghide
- 29Bain
- 49Forrest
- 54Montgomery
Goals:
- Forrest (73′ minutes)
Assists:
St Johnstone
Formation 3-5-2
- 1Clark
- 2Brown
- Substituted forVertainenat 80′minutes
- 6Gordon
- 4McCartBooked at 56mins
- 19RooneyBooked at 75mins
- Substituted forDendonckerat 90′minutes
- 10Wotherspoon
- Substituted forCrawfordat 52′minutesBooked at 90mins
- 8DavidsonBooked at 64mins
- 13BrysonBooked at 56mins
- Substituted forCraigat 80′minutesBooked at 90mins
- 24Booth
- 11O’Halloran
- 9Kane
Substitutes
- 5Dendoncker
- 12Parish
- 16Muller
- 17Vertainen
- 21Crawford
- 25Ambrose
- 26Craig
- 28Northcott
- 35Moreland
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Match Links
Stats
- Possession
- Home79%
- Away21%
- Shots
- Home16
- Away7
- Shots on Target
- Home3
- Away2
- Corners
- Home9
- Away0
- Fouls
- Home8
- Away16
Articles
Celtic’s modern day great provides fitting Bertie Auld tribute as St Johnstone’s cup stranglehold is broken
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/celtics-modern-day-great-provides-fitting-bertie-auld-tribute-as-st-johnstones-cup-stranglehold-is-broken-3465693
One hand has been wrested off St Johnstone’s possession of domestic cup trophies in Scotland. They will still be known as holders for a few weeks yet but the end of their reign as League Cup holders is nigh.
By Alan Pattullo
Saturday, 20th November 2021, 9:03 pm
Celtic were carried through to the final on a wave of emotion with the drums beating out tribute after tribute to Bertie Auld, who scored the winner for Celtic in the 1969/70 League Cup final win over St Johnstone.
Like then, this contest finished 1-0 and the tight margin of victory was a fair reflection on a match Celtic had initially seemed set to win at a canter. But you don’t become double cup winners in Scotland without being hard to beat. Celtic had to rely on a celebrated super sub to negotiate a way past their stubborn opponents.
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“They’ll encourage you and they’ll never forget you,” was written on a large banner unfurled before the start of the game. The quote referring to Celtic supporters is attributed to Auld’s father, Joe, on the day his son signed for Celtic in 1955. It was fitting, then, that a modern Celtic great should prove the difference between the sides here.
Celtic fans light up the stadium in the 67th minute in tribute to Lisbon Lion Bertie Auld. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)
Celtic fans light up the stadium in the 67th minute in tribute to Lisbon Lion Bertie Auld. (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)
There was perhaps some sense that James Forrest was being forgotten amid the acclaim for Celtic’s newer and younger wide men, Jota in particular. The Scotland winger picked a timely moment to remind people of his undoubted worth.
Liel Abada, another newcomer, has also impressed though he was quieter on the occasion. He made way for Forrest after 69 minutes. One hesitates to call the winger a veteran but he is now 30 and targeting an incredible 20th major trophy of a storied Celtic career in next month’s final.
He took only four minutes to make an impact on his 11th appearance of an injury-interrupted season. Jota stole the ball from James Brown after a poor Zander Clark kick out before making a bee-line for the byline. His cross was awkwardly cleared by Liam Gordon while facing the wrong way. Understandably, the centre-half, otherwise excellence, could not get enough distance on it.
Forrest was in the right place as far as he and Celtic were concerned to slam the ball in from the edge of the six-yard box. The Celtic fans had marked the 67th minute of the game by unveiling a huge banner depicting Auld, who passed away last week. Fortunately, they did not also portray him smoking a trademark cigar given the accompanying display of flares by the Green Brigade. Saints’ hopes went up in smoke shortly afterwards. Forrest pointed to the sky and ran to the fans. Bertie, you’re immortal.
Celtic fans light up the stadium in the 67th minute in tribute to Lisbon Lion Bertie Auld (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)
Celtic fans light up the stadium in the 67th minute in tribute to Lisbon Lion Bertie Auld (Photo by Ross MacDonald / SNS Group)
The Perth side’s fans had joined in an uplifting minute’s applause for one of the greatest characters the Scottish game has produced. The Celtic players all wore ten on their shorts in a nicely judged tribute.
Ange Postecoglou’s side began with an irresistible swagger. A sweeping move involving Callum McGregor and Jota should have been the source of an opening goal from David Turnbull after four minutes but the midfielder fired wastefully over from near the penalty spot.
No matter. The goal seemed set to come. It was only a matter of time. Jota was looking unplayable at this juncture. He even felt confident enough to pull off a “Rabona”, flummoxing Brown by wrapping his right leg around his left leg to deliver a cross that St Johnstone managed to clear. It would be wrong to claim Celtic were all tricks and little substance. But the sight of such showboating appeared to deepen St Johnstone’s resolve. They didn’t get to be double cup winners by standing back and admiring the opposition.
A Nir Bitton booking for fouling Chris Kane seemed to mark the point where an almost incessant period of Celtic pressure finally relented. We were at the quarter hour mark.
Callum Davidson’s side were supposed to be spooked by the reality of fans inside Hampden. All their previous four visits this year were to an empty national stadium. It was certainly far from empty here. Around 40,000 Celtic fans were present, perhaps 3,000 St Johnstone supporters. It was partisan in the extreme. Add in acclaim for Auld, and it seemed to be a night where it was not possible for Celtic to fail. They wouldn’t dare fall short.
But that was without factoring in this quite extraordinary Saints side. St Johnstone drew breath and took encouragement from the fact it was still goalless. They then did what they tend to do and frustrated the life out of the opposition. While it’s true that Joe Hart’s problems were often his own doing, Clark, at the other end, was not required to overstretch himself.
Celtic hearts were in mouths as Michael O’Halloran chased down a Stephen Welsh passback and almost harried Hart into a damaging mistake. The ‘keeper seemed to delay clearing and when he did, the ball rebounded off the sliding O’Halloran and behind for a goal-kick. It could so easily have been a less favourable outcome for Celtic.
Craig Bryson then tried his luck from long range before smothering the ball at the second attempt. Another effort from distance had Hart scrambling across his goalmouth. St Johnstone were dealt a blow when David Wotherspoon was forced off after falling to the turf following an innocuous challenge. Perhaps a multi-flight journey back from a Canada game in Edmonton in midweek had not helped. He was replaced by Ali Crawford, who fluffed an admittedly difficult chance to lob the out of position Hart after 72 minutes. O’Halloran, bursting through the middle, might have been a better option.
Nevertheless, there were few complaints at the end from St Johnstone fans, who applauded their side – Scotland’s team of 2021 – from the park.
Ange Postecoglou has first Celtic trophy in sights – ‘I won’t get two or three years to do that’
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/ange-postecoglou-has-first-celtic-trophy-in-sights-i-wont-get-two-or-three-years-to-do-that-3465699
Ange Postecoglou has stressed his determination to win a first trophy as Celtic manager – and the club’s first since the delayed Scottish Cup last year – after seeing his side clinch a Premier Sports Cup final place with a win over holders St Johnstone.
By Alan Pattullo
Saturday, 20th November 2021, 9:25 pm
Updated
9 hours ago
It was a tight, at times nervy affair at Hampden on a night when the life of Bertie Auld was celebrated by fans.
The Lisbon Lion died last week at the age of 83 and both sets of fans took part in a minute’s applause in his memory.
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Substitute James Forrest pounced to score the winner after 74 minutes when he lashed Liam Gordon’s attempted clearance into the net to set up a final against either Rangers or Hibs, who play on Sunday.
St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson felt his team limited Celtic despite the defeat. (Photo by Rob Casey / SNS Group)
St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson felt his team limited Celtic despite the defeat. (Photo by Rob Casey / SNS Group)
Auld might have won the European Cup with Celtic but Forrest, 30, is now targeting his 20th major honour with the Parkhead club in next month’s final.
“It’s always good when people tell you about what you’ve done in the past but I am still playing in the now,” said Forrest. “So I want to keep adding to it.”
Postecoglou is also desperate to lift the trophy – but for different reasons. He wants to kick-start his career at the club with a maiden win.
Despite only arriving this summer he is painfully aware that last season was the first time Celtic had failed to win a major honour since 2009-10. He is impatient to bring silverware to the club in his first season.
“I’m determined to come back and win the trophy,” he said. “It’s not about me personally.
“I understood when I took this role that it’s the measure. Yes, I have a vision of how I want to play football and build a team.
“But ultimately I knew the measure would be how quickly I can bring success to Celtic.
“I’m not going to get two or three years to do that. I came here to try and get this club back to where it should be. Now, I have an opportunity to do that in the final and that has to be our aim.”
Postecoglou dedicated the win to the memory of Auld. The players all wore the No 10 on their shorts and the fans unveiled a huge banner depicting the legend in the 67th minute.
“The tribute to Bertie is an important part of what this club is about,” he said. “The players wore the 10 on their shorts and I said to them after the game, we’re celebrating an immortal of this football club and the Scottish game.
“But we also have to understand there’s some sadness there for the people who are closest to him and his family.
“I’m hoping after that 90 minutes maybe they had a bit of a smile on their face and felt better for a moment. We thought about the great man and hopefully he was looking on from above. These things are important.”
St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson praised his own players after they fell to their first defeat at Hampden in five visits. The double cup winners did themselves proud here again.
“If you’d asked me beforehand if we could limit Celtic to three or four chances I’d have snapped your hand off,” said Davidson.
“The boys worked extremely hard, we tried to work off our shape and limit them. They have defended their trophy with a lot of pride and it’s credit to them that we are disappointed at losing a semi-final to Celtic.”
BBC
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/59293414
By Nick McPheatBBC Scotland at Hampden
Last updated on
2 hours ago2 hours ago.From the section Scottish League Cup
Forrest goal v St Johnstone
Substitute James Forrest (left) inspired Celtic to semi-final victory with the only goal of the game
James Forrest came off the bench to send Celtic into December’s Scottish League Cup final at the expense of holders St Johnstone.
On an emotional evening following the death of Celtic legend Bertie Auld earlier this week, the Parkhead side were frustrated until the 73rd minute.
But four minutes after his introduction, Forrest drilled in to spark wild scenes in the Celtic end.
Rangers or Hibernian will complete the final line-up on Sunday.
The defeat brings to an end a remarkable 11-game unbeaten run in knockout football for St Johnstone, which saw them win both last season’s domestic cup competitions.
As for Celtic, it is a domestic cup final at the first attempt for manager Ange Postecoglou – who is aiming to win his first silverware in Scotland.
Could Forrest make difference for Celtic?
Reaction & as it happened
Monday’s Scotland euphoria was swapped with raw emotion at Hampden as the Celtic end paid tribute to Lisbon Lion Auld with a moving display pre-match.
The stadium rose for a deafening minute’s applause and a roar from the 50,000-strong crowd followed.
After an entire season of being locked out last term, St Johnstone’s fans were finally getting the opportunity to watch their double cup-winning side at Hampden.
However, it looked like it would be a long night for Davidson’s men in the early exchanges. Jota took just two minutes to have a pop, skipping and dancing inside before guiding a right-footed effort wide.
The on-loan Benfica man was causing all sorts of problems for the Perth backline, setting up David Turnbull, who blasted over from close range, before dinking in a sublime ‘Rabona’ cross.
But Davidson’s men weathered out the early storm and began to pose a threat of their own when Michael O’Halloran’s dangerous ball evaded everyone in the box.
O’Halloran was again the threat as Joe Hart took a massive gamble and got away with one when his clearance rebounded off the attacker before rolling just past a post.
Hart – on his first visit back to Hampden since Leigh Griffiths bent two Scotland free-kicks beyond him in 2017 – again looked suspect when Craig Bryson struck from range, with the Celtic keeper smothering at the second attempt.
Bryson was then in the face of action at the other end, throwing himself to deny Liel Abada at close range.
With half-time nearing, there was still no sign of Celtic’s attacking spark reappearing as St Johnstone continued to ask questions, Chris Kane dragging an effort from outside the area wide.
But Davidson’s men had to be on hand to deny what looked like a certain goal with seconds remaining in the half as Jamie McCart somehow bettered Bryson’s previous block by sliding in to prevent Callum McGregor’s finish reaching the goal.
Similar to the first period, St Johnstone were hemmed in early in the second half but again held firm.
Groans were getting louder from the Celtic end, but with Postecoglou searching for a spark, Forrest was introduced.
He took to the pitch with sparks flying as the Celtic end paid a further tribute to Auld with a banner of the legend accompanied by pyrotechnics.
It took the forward just four minutes to make his impact, as Jota’s cross could only be cleared as far as the Scotland winger who fired in from close range.
The Perth side responded well as Celtic continued to take chances at the back, but it was Postecoglou’s side who came closest to adding to the scoring when Jota had a finish deflect just wide before Mikey Johnston was denied by Zander Clark.
Man of the match – Jota
Shaun Rooney & Jota
He went to ground a bit easily at times but again the Portuguese winger (right) was Celtic’s bright spark and failed to let St Johnstone’s stubbornness impact his game
What did we learn?
After the first few minutes, it seemed like Celtic would breeze their way to victory in the scintillating fashion we have become accustomed to under Postecoglou.
But resolute St Johnstone defending meant the Parkhead club had to dig in as they continue to show they can win ugly. It’s 11 games undefeated domestically now for the finalists with a showpiece event to look forward to.
Regardless of the way this game went, there was always going to be an immense sense of pride come full-time for St Johnstone.
But even the way they played out this contest enhances that further. They pushed and can be proud of their efforts once again.
Albeit a victory, last season’s semi-final win against Hibs sparked their season into life – they need this performance to do likewise.
What they said
Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou: “We knew it was going to be a tough game against a tough opponent who make things difficult for you in these cup games and I thought our players really held their discipline and stayed patient and worked hard.
“I thought we deserved our victory and it gives us the opportunity now to play for some silverware. It would have been easy for us to get frustrated and not play our football, but we stuck to our task and got our rewards.”
St Johnstone manager Callum Davidson: “Overall, very proud of what we tried to achieve and the way we went about our business. They defended their trophy with pride and courage and that’s all I can ask from them.
“A wee mistake for the goal, but I’m not going to criticise them – when you come to a semi-final at Hampden and Celtic have three shots on target, I would have taken that ahead of the game. I didn’t think there was dirty foul in the game, but there were 10 bookings, which made it difficult for us to put in challenges.”
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Match ends, Celtic 1, St. Johnstone 0.
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Full Time
Second Half ends, Celtic 1, St. Johnstone 0.
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Booking
Liam Craig (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card.
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Post update
Ismaila Soro (Celtic) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Post update
Foul by Liam Craig (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Attempt saved. Michael Johnston (Celtic) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
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Booking
Alister Crawford (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Post update
James Forrest (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Foul by Alister Crawford (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Foul by Callum McGregor (Celtic).
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Post update
Murray Davidson (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Substitution
Substitution, Celtic. Michael Johnston replaces Jota.
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Substitution
Substitution, Celtic. Ismaila Soro replaces David Turnbull.
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Substitution
Substitution, Celtic. Albian Ajeti replaces Kyogo Furuhashi.
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Michael O’Halloran (St. Johnstone) with an attempt from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Callum Booth with a cross.
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Anthony Ralston (Celtic) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by David Turnbull with a cross.
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Substitution
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Lars Dendoncker replaces Shaun Rooney.
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Jota (Celtic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by James Forrest.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Liam Gordon.
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Post update
Anthony Ralston (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Foul by Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Jota (Celtic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Josip Juranovic.
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Post update
Attempt saved. Eetu Vertainen (St. Johnstone) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Callum Booth.
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Post update
Foul by David Turnbull (Celtic).
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Post update
Callum Booth (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Offside, St. Johnstone. Zander Clark tries a through ball, but Christopher Kane is caught offside.
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Booking
David Turnbull (Celtic) is shown the yellow card.
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Post update
Foul by David Turnbull (Celtic).
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Post update
Alister Crawford (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
David Turnbull (Celtic) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Post update
Foul by Liam Craig (St. Johnstone).
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Substitution
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Liam Craig replaces Craig Bryson.
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Substitution
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Eetu Vertainen replaces James Brown.
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Substitution
Substitution, Celtic. James McCarthy replaces Stephen Welsh because of an injury.
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Booking
Shaun Rooney (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Post update
Stephen Welsh (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Foul by Shaun Rooney (St. Johnstone).
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Goal!
Goal! Celtic 1, St. Johnstone 0. James Forrest (Celtic) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the top left corner.
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Post update
Attempt missed. Alister Crawford (St. Johnstone) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by Craig Bryson following a fast break.
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Post update
Foul by Anthony Ralston (Celtic).
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Post update
Alister Crawford (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Substitution
Substitution, Celtic. James Forrest replaces Liel Abada.
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Post update
Foul by Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic).
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Post update
Jamie McCart (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Craig Bryson.
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Booking
Murray Davidson (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card.
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Post update
Jota (Celtic) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Post update
Foul by Murray Davidson (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Liam Gordon (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
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Post update
Attempt blocked. David Turnbull (Celtic) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Jota.
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Post update
David Turnbull (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Foul by Alister Crawford (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Offside, St. Johnstone. Zander Clark tries a through ball, but Alister Crawford is caught offside.
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Post update
Attempt saved. Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by David Turnbull with a cross.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Jamie McCart.
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Booking
Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic) is shown the yellow card.
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Booking
Craig Bryson (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card.
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Booking
Jamie McCart (St. Johnstone) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Post update
Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Post update
Foul by Jamie McCart (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Jota (Celtic) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Josip Juranovic.
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Post update
Anthony Ralston (Celtic) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Post update
Foul by Murray Davidson (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Shaun Rooney.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Liam Gordon.
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Substitution
Substitution, St. Johnstone. Alister Crawford replaces David Wotherspoon because of an injury.
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Post update
Nir Bitton (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Foul by Craig Bryson (St. Johnstone).
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Second Half
Second Half begins Celtic 0, St. Johnstone 0.
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Half Time
First Half ends, Celtic 0, St. Johnstone 0.
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Callum McGregor (Celtic) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by David Turnbull.
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Post update
Attempt missed. Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by David Wotherspoon.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Craig Bryson.
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Post update
Attempt blocked. Liel Abada (Celtic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
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Post update
Attempt saved. Craig Bryson (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner.
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Post update
Foul by David Turnbull (Celtic).
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Post update
Murray Davidson (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Jamie McCart.
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Post update
Attempt missed. Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by David Turnbull with a cross following a corner.
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Post update
Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Shaun Rooney.
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Post update
David Turnbull (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by David Wotherspoon (St. Johnstone).
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Attempt missed. Craig Bryson (St. Johnstone) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by David Wotherspoon.
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Attempt missed. Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by David Turnbull with a cross following a corner.
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Corner, Celtic. Conceded by Callum Booth.
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Nir Bitton (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by David Wotherspoon (St. Johnstone).
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Stephen Welsh (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Michael O’Halloran (St. Johnstone).
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Foul by Anthony Ralston (Celtic).
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Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Kyogo Furuhashi (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Craig Bryson (St. Johnstone).
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Booking
Nir Bitton (Celtic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Foul by Nir Bitton (Celtic).
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Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Attempt missed. Anthony Ralston (Celtic) left footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by David Turnbull.
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Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Post update
Foul by Christopher Kane (St. Johnstone).
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Post update
Offside, Celtic. Liel Abada tries a through ball, but David Turnbull is caught offside.
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Attempt blocked. David Turnbull (Celtic) header from the right side of the six yard box is blocked. Assisted by Jota with a cross.
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Attempt missed. David Turnbull (Celtic) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Jota.
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Attempt missed. Jota (Celtic) right footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Josip Juranovic.
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Josip Juranovic (Celtic) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Shaun Rooney (St. Johnstone).
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Kick Off
First Half begins.
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Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
Celtic chairman admits board ‘accountable’ for failure to win 10 in a row
Celtic’s chairman Iain Bankier has admitted the board should be held accountable for last year’s failure to gather a 10th consecutive Scottish league crown.
By David Oliver
Wednesday, 17th November 2021, 4:27 pm
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/celtic-chairman-admits-board-accountable-for-failure-to-win-10-in-a-row-3461640
The chairman was speaking in a pre-recorded interview ahead of the club’s annual general meeting at Celtic Park on Wednesday, alongside chief executive Michael Nicholson and finance officer Chris McKay.
Shareholders gathered having been sent the club’s financial results and accounting period to June, but for the same period on the field chairman Bankier admitted “frankly, it’s hard to see the positives”.
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Lamenting Rangers’ title triumph – secured in March and for the first time since 2011 – Mr Bankier admitted: “The reality is we didn’t achieve our primary objective and the bottom line is we as a board are accountable for that. We are accountable for that as we were accountable for all the other seasons and there is just no shying away from that
“We have analysed in great depth what happened and what went wrong And how we got into the position that we are in and there were lots of things outwith our control but there were lessons and we have learnt them.”
He did however praise rookie goalkeeper Conor Hazard for his impact on “one big highlight which we shouldn’t forget”.
“We won the Scottish Cup which was delayed and played in December which was a record-breaking 12th trophy in a row. It was a tough old day [against Hearts] and we had to dig it out but we did and the star of the show for me was Conor Hazard. He stood up to the plate and block to penalties and we won the cup.”
Away from the pitch Chris McKay also discussed the key points of the accounts with Celtic TV host Gerry McCulloch before the shareholders’ event.
He added: “We recorded a loss of £11.5million before financing and tax last year compared to a profit of 0.1m the year before. Within that we generated gains in sales of 9.4m which was a conscious decision not to sell players the way we could have in the year.
“What was important was we entered the pandemic with a very strong balance sheet and what is crucial as we have emerged with a very strong balance sheet.
“If you look at the year end we have a £19.4 million cash position therefore strong liquidity and strong values and the playing squad all underpinned by a significant and unutilised banking facility and underpinned by one of the largest season ticket holders’ base in the UK Plus a long list of strong commercial partners including adidas.
“Player trading is crucial, not just to Celtic but to most clubs these days in order to support a competitive squad and play up to 60 games a season we need to generate earnings from player trading to actually support that infrastructure. Most self-sustaining clubs would say the same.”
Michael Nicholson, who replaced Dominic McKay following his three-month spell at the club, also discussed the club’s position ahead of the meeting of shareholders.