Celtic vs Fenerbahce Match Report
On a raucous European night, Glasgow Celtic welcomed Fenerbahçe SK to Paradise for the second fixture of Group A, after the defending Scottish Champions earned a 2-2 draw at Ajax. While the crowd roared throughout Celtic Park, it was clear both sides were content on feeling the elements of their opposition. Celtic looked to come on strong, when in the opening 3 minutes, Leigh Griffiths received the ball on the far side of the box for strike at goal, missing just wide of the post and working the goalkeeper, Fabiano, in the process.
Mikael Lustig looked strong in the back for Celtic to begin the match, Fenerbahçe worked the right flank and put a beautiful cross to the far post, only to be cleared for a corner by the head of Lustig. The back four remain an issue for Celtic as they find themselves 4 points back of leaders, Aberdeen in the Scottish Premier Football League. Since the start of the season, Ronny Deila’s back line has been shaky at best and it continues to be a concern heading into the month of October.
In the 20th minute, former Liverpool and Chelsea man, Raul Meireles saw an early yellow card after pulling down James Forrest by the shirt as he looked to be a step or two ahead of the defender down the left touchline.
Celtic looked smooth in their passing after a few clumsy challenges by the Fenerbahçe defense, the Hoops started play quickly, resulting in a blocked shot for a corner which followed by a missed opportunity at the top of the area after a corner kick was given to the home side.
In the 28th minute Celtic finally found the back of the net after being the better side of the half hour played. A corner kick from the near side was sent into the area from Kris Commons; the ball was met by a header from Lustig that fell right to Leigh Griffiths. The striker got a shot away but was met by the keeper, Fabiano, who let a rebound fall right back to Griffiths, who then punched it in for the opening goal of the match.
Just 4 minutes after the opening goal of the match, James Forrest out maneuvered his defender on the far side and sent in a low cross to find a wide open Kris Commons who took a thundering shot with his left boot to nail the top left corner and Celtic Park exploded with their dream start, up 2-0.
Fenerbahçe was forced to use an early substitution in the first 40 minutes as Vilkan Sen left the match due to injury, he was replaced by the number 9 striker, Fernandäo. In two minutes time from coming onto the pitch, Fernandäo was given a gift from Efe Ambrose as a bouncing ball fell to the Celtic center back and he muffed his clearance that was intended to go back to the Celtic keeper, Craig Gordon. The terrible pass went straight to the feet of Fernandäo and he slotted the ball past Gordon to bring the match within one.
As the opening half came to a close it was the Glasgow side that put on the pressure earning their 3rd corner of the half. The kick from Commons was met with a header over the bar and Celtic would eventually head into the locker room with an entertaining 2-1 lead.
Bringing on Fernandäo for the injured Sen proved to be a genius move by manager Vitor Pereira , when early in the second half Fernandäo took a loose ball in the area and put it past Craig Gordon to level the teams at 2. From the time Fernandäo scored his second goal, the opening fifteen minutes of the second half belonged to Fenerbahce; getting two corner kicks and another opportunity for Fernandäo as he put a chip shot over the keeper that ended up well wide of the net. Celtic appeared to be largely out of rhythm coming out of the locker room and the Turkish side began firing at will, creating mismatches in the midfield and continuing to push the ball forward. Celtic scraped by the skin of their teeth from the early second half onslaught largely due to the fantastic goalkeeping by Craig Gordon.
After a quiet first half, Celtic captain Scott Brown made a strong appearance later in the second half with beating his man, Bruno Alves (who received a yellow card) and winning a free-kick outside the area. Although nothing came from the free kick, Brown gave the boys in green a much needed lift to push forward.
James Forrest and Leigh Griffiths used a nice one-two punch to separate the Fenerbahçe defense and Forrest got a shot away that was saved by Fabiano. After that play Celtic seemed to be turning the tide and put the pressure on the Turkish club, Kris Commons had a rocket of a shot from 25 yards away that was greatly handled by Fabiano. The Celtic Park faithful began to shuffle to the edge of their seat once more as the Hoops began controlling possession and got the ball moving forward after the 70th minute.
After the 80th minute Celtic manager Ronny Deila decided to bring on young man, Tyler Blackett for Kieran Tierney who played well at left back. The double substitution also saw a hobbled Stefan Johansen head to the bench and make way for Tom Rogic. Moments after the substitution Lustig found Commons on top of the area with loads of space around him, the one timed shot rifled above the right post into the abyss.
Mikael Lustig took a scary knock in the 85th minute when Fabiano came in to punch a corner kick from Kris Commons and he incidentally caught the jumping Lustig in right side of the head; Lustig walked off on his own power and came back on to finish the match.
Into stoppage time both sides did their best to find the winner. The Celtic faithful urged the Hoops to get the ball forward from midfield. Late sub, Stuart Armstrong found space on the left side and put in a dangerous low cross, though it was met by a Fenerbahçe defender.
The match ended with the Turkish side putting a cross into the area that was met with a messy clearance from Ambrose, and the final whistle was blown. The Europa League clash between Celtic and Fenerbahçe was an entertaining performance and Ronny Deila’s Hoops will be disappointed in earning one point after being ahead 2-0.
FINAL: Celtic 2 – Fenerbahçe 2
Below are individual notes that are strictly observed from the match:
IN FORM:
Celtic
James Forrest- The left side winger proved to be in vital positions whenever Celtic had a chance at goal. Forrest clearly got the best of Fenerbahçe defender, Özabayrakli for majority of the night.
Kris Commons- Commons not only had a goal in the match but he created space for himself and his teammates all night long. He had to bullet shots on the night that were both saved by Fabiano.
Craig Gordon- Without Gordon’s heroics for the first 15 minutes of the second half, Celtic would’ve been in loads of trouble and probably wouldn’t have earned a point from this match.
Leigh Griffiths- Scored a goal and created chances for Lustig and Commons late in the second half.
Fenerbahçe
Fernandäo- 2 goals on a European night is nothing new to Fernandäo, the only disappointment from his substitution is that he couldn’t find a third; although he had the opportunities to do so.
Nani- Worked the ball well on the left side and often found Fernandäo to create chances. He was better off finding him than the Dutch striker in the middle.
Raul Meireles- Although he saw a yellow card, Meireles had chances at goal and created a much needed breather for his side when they were back into their own end. His yellow card came early, but he was smart with his challenges from that point moving forward.
Fabiano- Another stellar performance of goalkeeping at the other end of the pitch. He faced accurate/heated shots from the Celtic forwards and stood his ground every time. Even though both keepers allowed two goals, they were the reason why one side didn’t get the final edge.
OUT OF FORM:
Celtic
Efe Ambrose- Not only did he muff a headed clearance back to Craig Gordon but he looked uncomfortable all night long. His man marking was on par, but he looked extremely nervous when the ball came his way.
Nir Bitton- Not much was heard or seen from the midfielder, although that’s not necessarily a bad thing, I tend to think it is on important European nights.
Fenerbahçe
Robin van Persie- The former Manchester united star was barely seen all night. That could be attributed to the man marking of Celtic’s back four, but otherwise he didn’t create many chances while on the ball, nor did he make an impact anywhere else.