Full Time: Partick Thistle 0-1 Celtic
Celtic went three points ahead at the top of the Scottish Premiership table, after they defeated Partick Thistle 1-0 away at the Firhill Park, on Friday night. Summer signing Olivier Ntcham got his first goal for the Scottish champions and that proved to be enough for Brendan Rodgers’ side to return back with three points.
Here we take a look at how each Celtic player fared on the night:
Celtic Player Ratings
Craig Gordon – 6/10
Had very little to do in goal, apart from coming out to collect a few crosses. Comfortable outing.
Mikael Lustig – 7/10
Solid and accomplished at the back has become the norm. Could not direct a header towards goal, from a Scott Sinclair corner.
Jozo Simunovic – 8/10
Another composed and rock-solid performance from the Croatian at the heart of the defence. Swept up everything that came his way and carried the ball out well from the back too.
Nir Bitton – 5/10
Allowed Kris Doolan to get past him and have a go at goal, but the Thistle man headed the ball over. A late scuffle in the box with Miles Storey could have ended up resulting in a penalty.
Kieran Tierney – 7.5/10
One of the most effective attacking outlets for the away side as he romped down the flank, regularly hitting crosses into the box. Almost scored a brilliant goal by himself.
Scott Brown – 7/10
One mistake aside, the captain was steely as ever, stopping attacks in the middle of the park and using the ball very effectively.
Callum McGregor – 7/10
His usual energetic self with sharp movement and good passing. Won the free-kick that eventually led to the goal.
Olivier Ntcham – 8/10
Played with great intensity and pressing. Won possession and burst forward with pace and power. Opened the scoring with a wonderfully hit first-time strike via a deflection from Brown.
Jonny Hayes – 5.5/10
Started off the game well, running at Callum Booth, but never really kicked on from there. Seemed like slowing down the play at times and lost possession too.
James Forrest – 6/10
Had a shot saved early on, but should have done better after Ntcham played him in through. Created spaces for his teammates, but doesn’t look like a natural centre-forward. Things looked much better once Leigh Griffiths came on.
Scott Sinclair – 6/10
Made a couple of dangerous runs down the flank, but apart from that, he never really threatened to take the game away.
Substitutes
Leigh Griffiths – 6/10
Replaced McGregor with half an hour left to play. Celtic looked much more dynamic with him leading the line, but he could not test the goalkeeper.
Tom Rogic – 6/10
Came on for Hayes with under 30 minutes left to play. Had a few shots at goal that went wide.
Stuart Armstrong – NA
Replaced Ntcham for the last ten minutes or so. Did not look like his head was in the game.