CELTIC 5 ABERDEEN 1

SPFL Premiership

Tuesday 25th February 2025

Celtic Park

Ref: John Beaton

It was a tale of chances missed and chances taken at Celtic Park, as Aberdeen could easily have been 2-0 up after 10 minutes, only to find themselves 3-0 down to a ruthless Celtic side, and out of the game by the interval.

After scoring the goal that beat Kilmarnock 1-0 at the weekend, Oday Dabbagh came in for his first start for the Dons as one of three changes, skipper Graeme Shinnie back in the side and Ross Doohan returning in goal. Ante Palaversa, Pape Gueye and Dimitar Mitov were among the substitutes. Nicky Devlin missed out with injury, Victor Enem replacing him on the bench.

Celtic lost 2-1 at Easter Road on Saturday and also made three changes with Greg Taylor, Luke McCowan and Adam Idah making way for Reo Hatate, Jota and Jeffrey Schlupp.

Celtic knocked the ball around nicely early on, but it was Aberdeen who created the first chance on seven minutes. Topi Keskinen won the ball in the middle of the park and fed Jeppe Okkels to go motoring forward. Okkels’ curling pass looked as though it would find Dabbagh, but Schmeichel was just quick enough off his line to smother the ball at his feet.

It could have been 1-0 for Aberdeen on 10. The Dons pressed Schmeichel with the ball at his feel to the left of the goal and forced a poor pass out which went straight to Kevin Nisbet 20 yards out, but with the goal gaping, his shot curled agonisingly across the face of goal and just wide of the far post.

Jota brought Celtic’s first threat in the 16th minute, running across the top of the box before swivelling to strike at goal, Doohan down to his left to push the shot behind.

Celtic were ahead on 25 minutes though, Engels cut inside and looked to play a pass into the area. Coming across to try to clear, Kristers Tobers could only put the ball up into the air, across the face of goal, where Maeda was the quickest to react, hooking a volley into the net from eight yards out.

It was 2-0 on the half hour. Aberdeen enjoyed a good passing move that got them to the edge of the Celtic box, but they lost possession and, within seconds, Celtic were deep in Aberdeen’s half thanks to Kuhn’s precise pass, 3v2, Jota and Engels combining before Jota mishit his effort from 10 yards out, the ball bobbling just inside the post.

The Dons nearly had one back on 34, Shinnie driving forward and finding Okkels. Cutting back inside to create space, he couldn’t get a proper connection on his shot but, unlike Jota, his effort bounced away to safety.

It was three on the brink of half-time. Hatate and Maeda combined on the edge of the box, playing into Engels. He slipped but McGregor was there to pick up the pieces, arcing a shot across goal and just inside the far corner. There was a VAR check for a foul on the edge of the area, but nothing was given.

HALF-TIME: CELTIC 3 ABERDEEN 0

Nisbet and Okkels were replaced by Pape Gueye and Shayden Morris at the break. Four minutes into the half, Tobers went down needing treatment to his right thigh before resuming.

With the game having largely gone to sleep, Celtic made a triple change just before the hour, Idah, McCowan and Yang replacing Kuhn, Jota and Hatate. Aberdeen responded by replacing Tobers with Alfie Dorrington on 62.

Morris almost scored a brilliant solo goal in the 63rd minute, winning the ball from Trusty just inside the Celtic half and sprinting towards goal with the Celtic man on his heels. Heading into the box, with Schmeichel coming out to meet him, Morris tried to put his shot just inside the far post but instead, it bobbled wide.

McGregor was booked for a foul on Keskinen on halfway after 65 minutes.

Keskinen had a similar run on goal to Morris in the 71st minute, but he could not get away from Carter-Vickers and did not get a shot away. Keskinen helped the ball back to the edge of the area where Shinnie drove a shot over the bar. Leighton Clarkson then replaced Sivert Heltne Nilsen.

He had barely got on the pitch when it was 4-0. Yang started out wide on the right but drove across the box, played a couple of sharp one-twos, collecting the second, from McCowan, on the corner of the six-yard box before squeezing the ball inside the near post.

Fletcher Boyd came on for the Dons in place of Dabbagh after 80 minutes, while Celtic replaced Engels and Schlupp with Scales and Bonnar.

Morris did get on the scoresheet in the 89th minute. Gueye brought the ball forward down the left then picked out Morris just inside the box on the right. He squared up Scales, accelerated away from him inside five yards and then drove a low shot through Schmeichel and in.

Celtic responded almost immediately, Maeda making it 5-1, Maeda arriving at the back post at exactly the right moment to jab in Johnston’s low cross through the six yard box.

CELTIC: Schmeichel, Johnston, Carter-Vickers, Trusty, Schlupp (Scales 80), Hatate (McCowan 59), McGregor, Engels (Bonnar 80), Kuhn (Idah 59), Jota (Yang 59), Maeda.

Subs not used: Sinisalo, Kenny, Murray, Ralston.

GOALS: Maeda (25, 90+2), Jota (30), McGregor (45), Yang (73)

BOOKED: McGregor

ABERDEEN: Doohan, Jensen, Tobers (Dorrington 62), Knoester, MacKenzie, Heltne Nilsen (Clarkson 72), Shinnie, Okkels (Morris 46), Keskinen, Dabbagh (Boyd 80), Nisbet (Gueye 46).

Subs not used: Mitov, Palaversa, Ambrose, Enem.

GOAL: Morris (89)