The Celtic Bhoys
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Celtic cruise to 3-0 victory over Albion Rovers in Scottish Cup 4th round

By Andrew Coppens

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 31: Moussa Dembele of Celtic celebrate at the final Whistle with teams mate Patrick Roberts and Jozo Simunovic during the Scottish Premiership match between Rangers FC and Celtic FC at Ibrox Stadium on December 31, 2016 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 31: Moussa Dembele of Celtic celebrate at the final Whistle with teams mate Patrick Roberts and Jozo Simunovic during the Scottish Premiership match between Rangers FC and Celtic FC at Ibrox Stadium on December 31, 2016 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images) /
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Celtic promised to come in to the Scottish Cup respecting their League One opponent Albion Rovers. They did that, but also did the business in a 3-0 route.

The match started off a bit slow, but there was little doubt who was going to run the match either. Celtic controlled vast swaths of possession throughout the match and after some frustrating misses the scoreline finally matched the domination the Bhoys had on the pitch.

Scott Sinclair notched a brilliant effort in the 30th minute, dipping a ball right over the Albion Rovers keeper for a 1-0 lead.

That lead would hold until late, and it was second-half substitute Patrick Roberts who made an immediate impact on the match. His individual brilliance was on full display from him coming on in the 74th minute.

Just two minutes later and he was in on the wing, delivering a timely pass to Scott Brown who was able to put a short cross in to Moussa Dembele who kneed it home for a 2-0 lead in the 76th minute.

That was the no-doubter moment of the match, but Celtic would add another one just before the end of the match. It was once again Roberts who got things started, winning a one-on-one battle and slotting a pass to the incoming Stuart Armstrong.

The in-form midfielder side-footed the easy pass in to the upper 90 and it was 3-0 just at the death of the match.

Celtic never were really challenged on their end of the pitch, dominating with 72 percent of the possession and outshooting Albion Rovers 20-1 on the day. The Bhoys also had an 8-1 advantage on shots on target and earned six corners to none for the hosts.

It is on to the 5th round of the Scottish Cup, and it will be the Bhoys at home against Inverness CT.

Man of the Match: Scott Brown

While Brown didn’t notch either of Celtic’s goals in this contest, he was an absolute boss in the center of the pitch. Celtic’s captain also was deeply involved in some of the best attacking done by the Hoops all match long. He did register an assist on Dembele’s goal as well.

On a day in which there wasn’t a clear-cut winner for this award, Brown’s ability to boss the middle of the pitch and get involved in multiple great chances gave us all we needed to award him this honor.

Brown has been in great form all season, but this may actually have been his best effort to date. Beyond being involved in the attack more than usual, the Celtic captain also kept Albion Rovers from getting out of their own half often.

It was a brilliant performance from a man who has seen his career rejuvenated under Brendan Rodgers.

Moment of the Match: Sinclair’s Goal

Simply put — sublime.

With the Bhoys struggling to find anything good happening in front of the Albion Rovers net, Sinclair had a moment of individual brilliance. Rather than look for others inside the box, Sinclair set himself up and punched home a high, dipping shot that swung just under the crossbar.

Good luck topping that, but we’re guessing there is more magic where that came from from Sinclair.

Biggest Takeaway: Celtic Are in Full Control of Scottish Football

Brendan Rodgers hands were tied a bit in coming up with this lineup against Albion Rovers. A pair of defenders weren’t available — one due to suspension, the other due to injury. Celtic also didn’t have striker Leigh Griffiths to pick due to injury.

No matter though, as Celtic ran Albion Rovers ragged for most of the match. While it took longer than anyone would’ve liked to make this one get out of reach, there was no doubt who was going to come away winners after Sinclair’s goal in the 30th minute.

If there was going to be a moment for the Bhoys to struggle it would be this match coming off a three-week break and without some of its best players on the pitch. Instead, Celtic showed its quality on the domestic level and seem destined to make a serious run at the rare domestic treble.

We’ll see just how long the unbeaten streak lasts, but with the scoring options around this Celtic squad there doesn’t seem to be a team capable of stopping this side when it is on its game or off of it either.

Up Next:

Celtic will take on St. Johnstone on Jan. 25 at Celtic Park. The Saints come in to the contest 5th in the Scottish Premiership standings on 28 points.

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