Despite the bad run of form Aberdeen have had during the last few months, they had posed a test when they faced Celtic this season. With a manager who has announced his departure at the end of June, they had this in mind when they walked out at Celtic Park. But their hopes didn’t last a lot: 12 seconds. This was the time Celtic needed to make the difference against the Dons. They didn’t even manage to get a touch on the ball as Commons slotted the ball past Langfield after a good assist from Anthony Stokes.

Celtic took an early lead and the afternoon looked rosey for them Neil Lennon’s men were above their rivals in every aspect of the game during the first minutes, as the visitors had lots of difficulties to find their feet into the game. With the major bulk of possession and lots of set pieces at their disposal when they play at home, the Hoops only needed an early lead to give them a morale boost in front of their crowd, who has been demanding better domestic performances all season.

As the minutes passed, the pace Celtic had shown on the early stages faded. The promise and hunger disappeared as the rhythm was disrupted and Aberdeen moved the ball to promising positions. The visitors’ confidence grew while they tried to hurt Celtic with the combination of their best assets: Niall McGinn and Johnny Hayes. Celtic, on their way to a second straight league title, only threatened with crosses from the wings; the Bhoys relied too much on their players’ individual efforts rather than trying to threaten Aberdeen as a unit.

The slowness of the game quickly affected the crowd. Celtic Park, once again far from being a full house, was impregnated by the tasteless character of their players. The spectators were left disappointed as the final first half whistle approached. The Bhoys lack of concentration in defense appeared again when Kelvin Wilson lost a ball to Josh Magennis near his own area. The Northern Irishman striker crossed back to Scott Vernon, whose low shot beat Forster and the diving tackle from Efe Ambrose. The hosts had, once again, rested on their laurels after putting themselves in front, and Aberdeen punished them with, arguably, their first clear chance.

Aberdeen take a deserved lead

Celtic showed the same lack of urgency that has repeatedly cursed the team in most of their domestic showings. Far from correcting their mistakes, the Bhoys allowed Aberdeen to wide their lead thanks to a brace from Josh Magennis. A good finish after an assist from Rae and a deflection were enough to give Aberdeen a great position with 30 minutes left. The striker ended the match with 2 goals and an assist to his name, in what will surely have been his best match since his arrival to Scotland in 2010.

Neil Lennon, whose comments have reflected some of the Celts main worries (lack of character, overconfidence), introduced a change just after the visitors silenced Celtic Park, again. Georgios Samaras came to replace Beram Kayal, and the leaders hit twice to make their rivals aware that they were still there… but Langfield answered with several good saves. Commons and Mulgrew were driving Celtic as Brown’s men packed their defense and hoped for the –even more- defining counterattack that could kill the game.

The hosts had their insistence prized when Mulgrew finally broke the wall to score the 2-3 to provide some faith to the crestfallen Celtic fans in the stadium. The Bhoys had less than 20 minutes to score, and their technical approach wasn’t the one needed as the visitors defended comfortably. With lots of set pieces and corner kicks to their disposal, the Glasgow team finally found their much desired goal after an up-and-down corner: Ambrose headed the ball properly, just to see it cleared off the line, but the bladder ended near Hooper, whose header finally beat Aberdeen’s resistance.

5 minutes remained, the home fans wanted more, and there was enough time to get the final icy on the cake. Aberdeen had some good counterattacking opportunities, but McGinn was exhausted and all their attacking players’ final balls ended in deception. Samaras final kick gave Celtic the 3 points The last kick arrived, and Celtic got a costless-kick near the area after a clear foul on Hooper. Commons final cross didn’t find a teammate at first, until the loose ball arrived to a diving Greek. Georgios Samaras overhead kick meant Celtic had taken the lead after a dull performance, and Celtic Park erupted after their European heroes had –finally- supplied them some excitement in the SPL.

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About the author
Jaume Portell Caño
Periodista. África y política. Ser comunista y comer gambas está mal. Creo que en ABC hacen buen periodismo.