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Celtic narrowly edged Rangers 2-1 on Saturday in the latest edition of the Old Firm.
The heated match featured practically everything a neutral fan could ask for. There was a great pace to the game, stunning goals, and a dramatic ending that had fans on the edge of their seats until the final whistle.
The bitter rivals entered the weekend sitting in the top two spots in the Scottish Premiership. Celtic was five points ahead of Rangers atop the standings, but the Bhoys had previously lost two of their last four matches. The Gers, on the other hand, came into the game without a league loss since late September.
Celtic turned up the pressure after a fairly even start
The Celtic Park crowd helped set the stage with an electric atmosphere inside the arena. Saturday’s matchup then got off to a frenetic start, with both teams having good scoring opportunities in the opening ten minutes.
The hosts had the first big chance of the match in the fifth minute, but Kyogo saw his shot saved by Jack Butland. Ross McCausland then saw his dangerous low cross into Celtic’s boss kicked away by Joe Hart two minutes later.
While the game started fairly even, Celtic eventually began to turn the screws as the game went on. Paulo Bernardo initially skimmed the side netting of the Rangers goal with a shot in the 23rd minute.
However, the Portuguese midfielder put his team ahead just two minutes later with a wonderful strike. The hosts created the goal from a quality corner kick into the box.
Bernardo collected the ball and struck a perfect shot beyond an outstretched Butland to give Celtic the lead. The goalscorer was then somewhat harshly booked for celebrating with the home fans.
Although they grabbed an early goal, Celtic was dealt a blow when Stephen Welsh had to be substituted with an apparent shoulder injury in the 35th minute. The club was already short at the central defender position with USMNT star Cameron Carter-Vickers missing the match….
Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/celtic-narrowly-tops-rangers-in-dramatic-old-firm-derby-20231230-WST-480512.html
Author : Chris Moore
Publish date : 2023-12-30 16:00:27
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