Celtic face Rangers on Sunday in the Viaplay League Cup Final at Hampden. The Scottish Champions met their city rivals in the 2019 Cup Final and, despite being under the cosh for large parts of the game, Celtic walked away with the trophy.
In truth, Fraser Forster inspired Celtic to a League Cup win over Rangers with his performance between the sticks but it was Christopher Jullien that grabbed the winner. Neil Lennon’s Celtic lined up with injury concerns up front meaning that Lewis Morgan had to lead the line. From the outset, Rangers were much more aggressive and Celtic never got going.
Thanks to Forster, Celtic were able to go into the break on an even footing allowing the team to regroup and for the manager to inspire them onto an improved second half performance. Things didn’t appear to improve, Rangers again had more chances but
Odsonne Edouard came on and his impact was felt, he won a free-kick before Ryan Christie’s delivery found Jullien in the box. It was a good finish from the French defender and he enjoyed his moment.
Minutes later, Rangers were given a huge chance to get back into the game as Jeremie Frimpong was sent off by Willie Collum and Rangers were awarded a penalty. James Tavernier abdicated penalty duties to Alfredo Morelos, who stepped up and missed.
After the game, Celtic manager Lennon praised Forster but acknowledged that his team were not up to it on the day but still found a way to win.
“Fraser Forster was outstanding. He made some unbelievable saves, world class saves. I didn’t even celebrate it. I was too wrapped up in how we were playing and how we were going to get a proper foothold in the game.
“We weren’t great today but we still won and that’s what cup football is all about.”
Celtic: Forster; Hayes, Ajer, Jullien, Frimpong; Brown, McGregor, Christie; Elyounoussi (Johnston ’45), Morgan (Edouard ’59), Forrest (Bitton 66′).
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