Celtic FC vs Legia Warsaw - Champions League 2014-15
BT Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Wednesday, 06 August 2014 20:45
BT Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Wednesday, 06 August 2014 20:45
Celtic
saw their Champions League hopes take a devastating blow in the
first-leg, as they were outplayed all over the pitch in a 4:1 defeat. A
red card to Efe Ambrose on the stroke of halftime meant Celtic needed to do some damage control in the second half. But unfortunately for new manager Ronny Deila,
his boys were simply off the pace in the Polish capital. The lone
bright spot for the Scottish club was the fact that they didn’t lose by
even more, as Ivica Vrdoljak missed two penalty kicks with the latter
one being saved by coveted goalkeeper Fraser Forster.
This result will give fans even more reason to call for activity in the
transfer market, and perhaps after their performance against Legia,
those calls are completely warranted and necessary. But the hosts do
still have a glimmer of hope behind a critical away goal and a return to
the friendlier confines of Scotland. Celtic went unconquered at home last season in the Scottish Premiership,
winning 16 of their 19 games, and while improbable, it wouldn’t be a
farfetched proposition of them turning around this deficit in Edinburgh.
Legia Warsaw team stated their intent with a commanding performance in the first-leg, treating their home fans to a 4:1 thrashing of the Scottish champions. Veteran attacker Miroslav Radovic
equalized the match just two minutes after going down in the early
going and then fired his side in front ten minutes from halftime. The
Serbian led the Polish champions in goals last season, netting 13 times
in league play (4th place in the rankings), but he also demonstrated his
more generous side when setting up the third goal for his teammate
Micha Zyro, and the rout was on. If a negative can be taken from the
match, it was the two missed penalty kicks from Ivica Vrdoljak, but all
is forgiven when your teammates bail you out with a masterful
performance. But the visitors must stay grounded here, as Celtic are very good at home in front of their rabid fan base. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Norwegian manager Henning Berg
opt for a more cautious approach with such a large lead, bunkering back
in defence and hoping to grab a decisive goal on the counter attack.
Probable lineups Celtic: Forster – Lustig, van Dijk, Mulgrew, Izaguirre – Johansen, Kayal – McGregor, Commons, Berget – Pukki.
Probable lineups Legia Warsaw: Kuciak – Broz, Astiz, Rzezniczak, Brzyski – Vrdoljak, Jodlowiec – Zyro, Duda, Kucharczyk – Radovic.
You can watch the match here: Link 1 , Link 2 [Live Scores]
Probable lineups Celtic: Forster – Lustig, van Dijk, Mulgrew, Izaguirre – Johansen, Kayal – McGregor, Commons, Berget – Pukki.
Probable lineups Legia Warsaw: Kuciak – Broz, Astiz, Rzezniczak, Brzyski – Vrdoljak, Jodlowiec – Zyro, Duda, Kucharczyk – Radovic.
You can watch the match here: Link 1 , Link 2 [Live Scores]
