MATCH REPORT: CELTIC 2 ICT 1
PRE-MATCH COMMENT. Although I rate McManus, I was disappointed that he was fit to play as I was hoping to see O’Dea have a full run out.
BORUC ….…….6 Had virtually nothing to do except pick the ball out of the net.
HINKEL... ….. 6 I like his natural confidence when he’s on the ball and he is very comfortable going fwd but he has some work to do on the defensive positional part of his game.
CALDWELL….. 7 No big mistakes so a sound, unspectacular game.
McMANUS…. …7 Displayed a great piece of skill out on the left wing to bamboozle the ICT player then unfortunately decided to pass the ball to Brown!
NAYLOR….….….5 He can bring a ball down very well, he can send over a very good cross but in between all of this is a player who insists on giving the ball away in very dangerous areas. Should really be ‘rested’ and Wilson be given his chance when he returns, hopefully from America, with the all clear.
McGEADY …. …..7 I always enjoy the tussles he has with Ross Toakley and to-day was no different. Found it difficult at times to get past his marker but never gave up and produced another absolute piece of skill to create the second goal. Certainly came out on top in the head to head.
BROWN..…….. 4 These are the games that he should be stamping his authority but he was pretty ineffective and failed to show why Celtic paid 4.5m for him. His awful mistake led to a complete change in how the game was progressing. I can never fault his commitment but he is soon going to have to add decisive passing and scoring of goals to his repertoire.
DONATI …….. . 6 There is no question that he is a very confident, skillful player when he is on the ball and some of his crossfield passing is a delight to watch but I feel he plays to close to the back four and would be more effective initiating attacks from further up the park.
NAKA…….. …… 5 He sent over a wonderful free-kick to set up the first goal but he also displayed too many sloppy passes.
McDONALD ….. 7 He did what he is paid to do, i.e. score goals. He is a natural poacher.
SAMARAS ……7 MOM I think it is going to take a little bit of time for the supporters to fully appreciate the whole range of skills this guy has. He has lovely quick feet, he has a great burst of speed, he wins a lot of aerial balls, he has an eye for goal and he showed that he can use his head to score as well. But he has the tendency to drift out of the game a la St Mirren although to-night he had his slump in the latter part of the first half and came back very strongly in to-nights game.
SUBS ………….1. KILLEN…… 3 I just do not see anything in his many appearances that indicate he has anything to offer Celtic.
REF…………. 5 Started so well and I thought he was a welcome addition to the Grade 1 refs but the longer the game went on the less impressed I became. How could he not award a penalty for that foul on Brown.
THE GAME ……7 For the first 70 mins I was really enjoying the open play and fast interchanging passing coming from Celtic. Unfortunately, after the Brown gaffe it all changed.
GOALS ………. 1st A delightful free kick by Naka allowed McDonald to sneak in and put the ball in the net from close range.
2nd A classic goal! McGeady gets the ball out on the left, he has two ment o beat which he does but then he goes back to beat them again which he does and send over a wonderful cross which was very well met by Samaras..
ICT goal: 1st An awful mistake by Brown caused the goal and then panic..
COMMENTS ….. 1. In a week in which two ex-Celtic players, Beattie and Millar, are told they can go out on loan, it was pleasing to read that Laursen had achieved a very good move to Copenhagen.
2 comments:
Martin
Hugely impressed by the speed at which you have produced this considered report following tonight's match, and with so few typos!
Equally astonished at how much I can agree with it.....only to spectacularly disagree with one assessment...your man of the match.
I have to commence by accepting that the fans text vote also put him on that particular platform and so I may well be wrong, but had Aiden not skinned 3 (three)players all tightly marking him and put an inch perfect cross on his napper Giorgios would have finished the game leaving us all bewildered.
Bewildered at how such quick skillful feet can metamorphosise into oversize wooden clogs in so many attempted one-twos. How he can give up entirely on a perfect through ball when the keeper dain to attempt to reach it first, and how he seems so unaware that a physical challenge for a high ball won't actually kill him.
He has quick, skillful feet. He can build up a head of pace running with the ball and he is always desperate to get involved (to a point where he drops wide just to pick the ball up even though we have wide players who are supposed to be feeding him) but there is something about our man the verges so delicately balanced twix genius and moron that makes Giorgios, at the minute, an enigma.
Thankfully he comes with a story and a huge transfer fee in his history. Had he been introduced tonight as the best of our youth set up then the comparisons would already be forming with Gerry Britton!
I genuinely cannot wait for the return of Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, but also with Giorgios turning out to be the player that he thinks he is.
Kevin,
What can I say? You only have one typo that I can see and yet you have managed to put to-gether a very good assessment of Samaras.
I said to my friend during the second half "For a guy who wins so many balls in the air, he is a wee bit wimpy when it comes to attacking the ball in the penalty area". Two minutes later he powers in a great header.
His quick feet are a joy to watch and so is is willingness to run into space (it's a pity that so many of his teamates fail to spot them). I, like you, would have JVOH starting on Sat but with Sama waiting to inflict damage coming off the bench.
Was playing golf on Mon in St A and one of the guys, who is a keen Man City fan, said that he was great coming off the bench but not so good in starting.
There is only one thing that matters, i.e. 3pts from each game.
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