Relief for Neil Lennon as Celtic hit the goal trail against managerless Kilmarnock

[ASFN Admin]

Kilmarnock 0 Celtic 4 It is probably only academic that Celtic reduced Rangers’ lead in the Scottish Premiership to 20 points but Neil Lennon’s players at least produced a performance of will and guile, albeit that Kilmarnock could complain about refereeing decisions as Scott Brown opened the scoring, Odsonne Edouard netted a subsequent double, the first being a penalty kick and Albian Ajeti struck a late fourth for his first goal since September 27. A dismal statistic united these sides before kick-off, namely, that each had posted only a single win in 2021, with the victim in both cases being Hamilton, the league’s bottom club. Kilmarnock’s poor form cost Alex Dyer his job after Saturday’s 3-2 home defeat by St Johnstone and, if the Celtic fans who mount furious denunciations on social media had their way, Lennon would also be unemployed following the 2-1 loss to St Mirren on the same afternoon. Lennon, though, was still in place for this encounter, while Killie were under the supervision of their director of football, James Fowler, while the club sought a successor to Dyer. Arsenal’s Zech Medley and Brandon Pierrick of Crystal Palace joined on loan before the close of Monday’s transfer window, while Celtic brought in Johnjoe Kenny from Everton to fill the gap at right-back left by the departure of Jeremie Frimpong for Bayer Leverkusen. The two home newcomers were on the bench, while Kenny got a start in a Celtic side which also saw Brown return from suspension and Stephen Welsh, Ryan Christie and Albien Ajeti coming in, as Shane Duffy, Nir Bitton, Mo Elyounoussi, Ismalia Soro and Leigh Griffiths making way. A bitter, raw night of scouring Arctic winds and rain showers and a contest played on an artificial surface in an empty stadium provided a powerful examination of character and motivation on both sides. Celtic were first to show pushing upfield early with Kenny prominent in their movement on the right. Brown made his presence felt in the opening stages, physically so in the case of Aaron Tshibiola, who was on the end of a flying elbow and who, when he tried to exact revenge, was cautioned. Prior to those hostilities, both teams could have gone ahead, with Chris Burke almost sliding the ball over the Celtic line but thwarted a yard out by his former team mate, Greg Taylor. At the other end, Odsonne Edouard got as close but the ball was plucked off his toe by Colin Doyle. Kilmarnock were undone almost on the half hour when Celtic won a corner on the right and Alan Power let Brown slip away from him to meet David Turnbull’s perfect delivery with a stooping header away from the goalkeeper. Edouard twice had the ball in the Killie net in the early stages of the second half, first on the rebound from a Christie shot which had struck the post but the midfielder was flagged offside as his French colleague celebrated. He had proper cause to do so soon afterwards when Doyle was penalised for a foul on Ajeti, which looked harsh on the Irishman. Doyle’s grievance was heightened when he got a glove to Edouard’s conversion but could not prevent the ball crossing the line. Celtic’s clincher came just after the hour when Edouard – just offside, according to the home defenders - fastened on to Turnbull’s neat chip to finish with brio and there was time for Ajeti to add a bonus fourth with a low drive. Match details Kilmarnock (4-4-2): Doyle; Millen, Dikamona, Rossi, Haunstrup; Burke (Pinnock, 75), Power, Dicker (Pierrick, 67), Tshibola; McKenzie, Oakley (Kabamba, 67). Substitutes not used: Lyle (g), McGowan, Medley, Brindley, Dabo, Whitehall. Booked: Tshibola. Celtic (4-4-2): Bain; Kenny, Welsh, Ajer, Taylor (Laxalt, 89); Christie (Elyounoussi, 67), Browwn, McGregor, Turnbull (Johnston, 70); Edouard (Klimala, 70), Ajeti. Substitutes not used: Barkas (g), Duffy, Griffiths, Soro, Rogic. Goals: Brown (29), Edouard (53 pen, 62), Ajeti (86). Referee: Kevin Clancy.

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