Celtic currently lead the Scottish Premiership on goal differential, but their defense will be put to the test more in the Champions League against Feyenoord, Lazio, and Atletico Madrid. In the first Glasgow Derby match of the season, Celtic defeated archrivals Rangers 1-0, with Kyogo Furuhashi scoring a stunning volley to secure the victory. Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers tried to sign a talented young defender from the continent, but he turned down the opportunity.
Celtic fought to earn an important three points thanks to a magnificent volley from talisman Kyogo Furuhashi in a game marred by controversy surrounding Kemar Roofe’s disallowed goal due to a foul from Cyriel Dessers on Gustaf Lagerbielke in the build-up to the ultimate chalked-off shot.
In response to previous criticism of their performances, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers praised his team’s efforts and praised their will to defeat Rangers in a normally hostile environment, saying: “I’m very thrilled for the lads. Coming into this game, I believe the media had them under death watch for the previous week or so. However, as a coach, it was for me
According to SofaScore, Celtic’s standout players on the day included Danish midfielder Matt O’Riley, Republic of Ireland international Liam Scales, and newcomer Lagerbielke. They received respective match ratings of 7.8/10, 7.4/10, and 7.2/10 for their performances on the field.
Celtic’s summertime acquisitions
Fee
IF Elfsborg’s Gustaf Lagerbielke
£3m
Holm, Odin Thiago (Valerenga)
£2.5m
Melbourne City’s Marco Tilio
£2m
Yang, Hyun-Jun (Gangwon)
£2m
Hyeokkyu Kwon (I-Park in Busan)
£1m
Benfica’s Paulo Bernardo
Loan
Liverpool’s Nat Phillips
Loan
Legia Warsaw’s Maik Nawrocki
£4.3m
Aris FC’s Luis Palma
£3.5m
The Yokohama F. Marinos’ Tomoki Iwata
Undisc.
According to Sky Sports, all fees
