Celtic had to show conviction under pressure yesterday afternoon to progress to the Scottish Cup final at the expense of Aberdeen.
Bojan Miovski sprung the trap early to put Aberdeen ahead, though Nicolas Kuhn’s close-range finish swiftly pegged back the Dons and concluded the first half scoring.
Rolling back the years, James Forrest made an immediate impression off the bench on 63 minutes, jinking inside before curling past Kelle Roos into the bottom corner to give Brendan Rodgers’ men the advantage.
Nevertheless, penalty madness ensued after Ester Sokler and Angus MacDonald’s headers were sandwiched on either side of Matt O’Riley’s cultured finish in extra time.
Each of Celtic’s penalty-takers converted successfully, apart from Joe Hart, who was unfortunate to see his drilled strike rebound off the post that would’ve wrapped up progression to the final.
Despite this, the 37-year-old produced heroics to become the man of the hour for the Bhoys, saving from Killian Phillips later to send three corners of Hampden into ecstasy.
In the interest of honesty, it wasn’t a game for the faint of heart; however, Celtic must be commended for their resilience to see through their mission of reaching the final two.
Matt O’Riley on key factor that saw Celtic over the line
O’Riley enjoyed a productive afternoon in the Celtic midfield, getting himself on the scoresheet alongside picking up the Scottish Gas Player of the Match award for his efforts against Aberdeen yesterday.
Citing the challenges of having to navigate a difficult penalty shootout scenario, the Denmark international eluded to a collective togetherness within the camp as the main reason for Celtic eventually prevailing against Aberdeen.
He stated [Cited via BBC Sport]: “I can’t speak for everyone, to be honest; I think we were just trying to encourage each other.
“We stay positive and just trust each other; I think we did that. We are a really tight group, and I think that shows in the way we play usually and also off the pitch behind the scenes.
“We are really tight, so I think that makes the difference in those moments.”
Celtic did enough to get the job done against Aberdeen
Granted, Celtic have performed better on numerous occasions this term; however, winning is all that matters in the Scottish Cup, and we now have a final to look forward to on May 25th.
Now, five pivotal post-split fixtures remain in the league, where there is little margin for error as the Bhoys seek a domestic double.
Rodgers and company will be aware that more tough tasks lie ahead, though we find ourselves in an encouraging position as the run-in begins to accelerate.