Fter their Champions League exploits in the midweek, the champions returned to domestic action with a 3-1 victory over Motherwell at Fir Park thanks to goals from Daizen Meada and Adam Idah. The Celts got off to the perfect start when, with less than a minute played, Daizen Maeda found the back of the net. After some lovely passing play outside the box on the left-hand side, the ball found its way to Anthony Ralston on the right wing. The right back whipped a cross towards the back post, where Daizen was waiting to head it back across goal and away from the Motherwell keeper to make it 1-0. For the next 20 minutes or so, Brendan Rodgers’ men were comfortable in the game and continued to move the ball well, particularly on the left-hand side where Taylor, McCowan, Hatate, and Maeda were linking up brilliantly. Then, in the 23rd minute of the match, the home side drew themselves level. A ball in to the box from Dom Thompson deflected off of Auston Trusty and straight in to the path of Luke Armstrong, who smashed his effort beyond Kasper Schmeichel to make it 1-1. There appeared to be a shove on Carter-Vickers from Armstrong in the immediate lead-up to the goal, however the goal was given, and the game was level. Motherwell’s equaliser seemed to spark the champions back in to life, and with 30 minutes on the clock, the Hoops had the lead again. And once again, the goal came from some brilliant link-up play on the left wing between Reo Hatate, Luke McCowan and Daizen Maeda, with the latter firing the ball across the face of goal towards Adam Idah, who knocked it in to the back of the net from close range. Just over five minutes later, the Celts almost took a two-goal lead when Luke McCowan whipped a cross in from a corner kick which evaded the entire Motherwell defence and found Daizen Maeda unmarked at the back post, but the Japanese forward’s header crept just wide of the target. The same Celtic duo linked up again just after the 40-minute mark when McCowan clipped a clever ball over the home side’s defence and in to Daizen’s path, but his effort from just outside the six-yard box sailed over the bar. With less than five minutes of the second half gone, the champions looked to have taken a 3-1 lead when Reo Hatate sent a sensational ball forward which found Adam Idah. The Irishman attempted to flash the ball across the face of goal, but it was turned in to the net by a Motherwell defender. VAR came to the home side’s rescue, however, judging that Idah had been offside in the build-up, and the goal was ruled out. Celtic had the ball in the net again on the hour mark, this time through Nicolas Kuhn who produced an acrobatic overhead kick to find the target, but once again the goal was ruled out for offside, denying the German winger a goal of the season contender. The Hoops were in full control of the game in the second half and with 65 minutes gone, Adam Idah rattled the post with an effort from the edge of the box which had the Motherwell keeper completely beaten. Just after Idah’s attempt, Brendan made two subs, bringing Luke McCowan and Nicolas Kuhn off and replacing them with Arne Engels and Jota, with the latter receiving a warm welcome back from the Celtic faithful. Celtic continued to press forward in search of a third goal which would secure the three points, and whilst the work in the forward areas was excellent all afternoon, credit also has to go to the Hoops’ back line for the work that they put in to nullify any threats from the Motherwell attack. With three minutes left to play, Jota picked up the ball on the left wing and drove towards the edge of the box. He managed to find space for a shot at goal but, on this occasion, the Motherwell keeper was equal to it and he was able to keep it from going in. However, there was no stopping the Portuguese winger’s effort in the 94th minute which sealed a 3-1 victory for the Bhoys. A sensational ball forward from Engels found Maeda, whose cutback across goal reached Jota, and the Portuguese needed no invitation as he slammed the ball home from close range. Next up for the Celts is a home match against Dundee at Paradise on Wednesday night where the Hoops will look to grab another three points. 🍀Subscribe today to the official YouTube of the world’s first Quadruple Treble winners, Celtic Football Club:
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