Celtic took home all three points from fellow Glasgow neighbours Partick Thistle after a 2-0 victory at the Firhill Stadium yesterday.
It was another successful trip to the West End of the city for Celtic, who continue a winning streak over the Jags which has lasted over 20 years.
Thistle started brightly and striker Ryan Stevenson was not afraid to get involved with defender Virgil van Dijk, evident when the Dutchman drew blood from the striker. The hosts had to briefly weather a Celtic storm with 10 men, as Stevenson was kept off the pitch for the best part of five minutes for treatment.
Rogic finally scores for Celtic in dominant victory
Australian Tom Rogic, who has struggled to make an impact for Celtic since signing in 2013, finally got his first goal for the club. Some very attractive link-up play as the attack came in from the left saw Leigh Griffiths square the ball slightly behind Rogic, who still had the ability to flick it into the right hand side of the net. Partick goalkeeper Tomas Cerny was stranded and could only watch as the 22-year-old ran to celebrate with his teammates.
Celtic then began to dominate possession and looked to double their lead. The chance soon arrived as the ball came to the feet of van Dijk, who looked to shoot from all of thirty yards and sent the ball crashing into the foot of the left hand post. It would have been game over had the Dutchman found the back of the net.
The 7,000 fans at Firhill then witnessed the hoops take a two goal lead shortly after the hour as Nir Bitton, who is going from strength-to-strength this season, unleashed a wonderfully weighted long pass that caught-out the Partick defence. Kris Commons, however, had the whereabouts to latch onto the ball and send it gently over the stranded Cerny.
Partick unveil their own Pogba in valiant showing
Credit must go to Partick Thistle, who never gave up on trying to take something from this game and came close in first-half stoppage time. A ball bouncing in the box was hit away by stand-in captain Mikael Lustig, and the attempted cross made contact with his forearm. No penalty was the decision of referee John Beaton, and upon examination this was probably correct.
Mathias Pogba, brother of Juventus star Paul, was introduced for his Jags debut and had the best chance for Partick Thistle with just five minutes remaining. Ex-Liverpool winger David Amoo skipped past the Celtic defence and pulled the ball back to the Frenchman, who sent the ball wide of Craig Gordon’s right-hand post.
[interaction id=”55c8be6e1e28de9a324dadd3″]
Celtic season starts on the right note
Celtic were content to see out their victory as referee John Beaton drew the match to a close. Attention now turns to the first round of midweek fixtures in the SPFL Premiership, where they travel to Rugby Park to take on Kilmarnock, who are rock bottom of the league.
A satisfying day on the whole with another clean sheet, and some fringe players including Rogic showing what they are capable of in the right situation. This will allow Ronny Deila to plan his teams adequately before they face Malmo in the UEFA Champions League play-off a week from Tuesday.
The Hoops’ man of the match would have to be Virgil van Dijk, the big Dutchman just looks far too comfortable on the field and most likely will not be able to resist the lure of the Premier League.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
