SFA Postponed Celtic Victory Against Heart Because…
With a 3-0 victory over Hearts setting up what might be a derby to remember for the Parkhead supporters, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers was looking forward to “a bit of fun” against Rangers.
Celtic now trail Rangers by six points after goals from Kyogo Furuhashi in the first half and a late penalty from Matt O’Riley. Their next game is a Saturday home match against the Light Blues.
Rangers did win their game in hand against Kilmarnock the next day to reduce that deficit but Celtic know a win against their rivals would take them six points clear with six to go – effectively sealing the title due to their superior goal difference.
A banner in the standing section saw Celtic fans declare themselves “impatient for the coming fight” and Rodgers feels his full-strength squad are in a healthy psychological place ahead of the biggest match of the season – live on Sky Sports on Saturday.
How Celtic moved closer to the title
Hearts had won the previous two meetings between the teams but Celtic were at full strength for the first time this season after Daizen Maeda recovered from a hamstring injury to take his place on the bench.
The visitors gave as good as they got in the opening stages and came close to a first-minute lead. Lawrence Shankland looked certain to score after Dexter Lembikisa’s cutback but Cameron Carter-Vickers threw himself in the way of the striker’s effort to divert the ball behind for a corner.
The home side were ahead in the fourth minute after Zander Clark punched Matt O’Riley’s corner out to the edge of the box. Reo Hatate lobbed the ball back into the goalmouth for Furuhashi to nod home. Although Shankland had retreated to the line, there was a close VAR check for offside as Clark was initially ahead of the Celtic striker as Hatate collected the ball.
