Celtic FC vs CFR Cluj Live Blog: Score and Updates
By Kade Kistner
Celtic FC was defeated by CFR Cluj in the Third Qualifying Round of the Champions League. Celtic FC will now be inserted into the Europa League Playoff Round.
FT: Celtic FC 3-4 Cluj. Celtic will be inserted into the Europa League Playoff Round. Disappointing considering the great second half. Defence was shotty. Bain requires his own article. And the officiating was non-existent.
97′: GOAL. Celtic 3-4 Cluj.
90′: Six-minutes added.
88′: Substitution. Bayo comes on for Brown.
83′: SUBSTITUTION. Griffiths coming on for Ntcham.
80′: GOAL. Celtic 3-3 Cluj. Cluj hold the tie-breaker. 10-min left for Celtic to get a goal.
76′: GOAL!!!!! Celtic 3-2 Cluj!! Edouard to Christie! Beautiful! Celtic leads on aggregate!
74′: Substitution. Lewis Morgan on for Johnston.
74′: GOAL. Celtic 2-2 Cluj. Penalty kick due to hand-ball by Scott Brown. Cluj holds tie breaker with two away goals.
72′: Corner kick for Cluj. Referee points to the penalty spot, and confusion on the field.
65′: Fantastic attempt by Christie and Johnston. Great through-ball. Just could not connect for the goal.
63′: Ryan Christie was just wide right of the goal. Almost added another.
63′: YELLOW CARD. Referees book Cluj on another YC.
61′: GOALLLL! Celtic 2-1 Cluj!! Elhamed perfect cross to Edouard who finishes with a brilliant shot!
59′: McGregor bobbled a shot, and could not connect. Celtic is really pressing Cluj now.
54′: Christie to Edouard came up just wide. Much different Celtic side this half.
52′: Another reckless tackle by Cluj. A yellow card seemed certain, but again, nothing from the referee.
51′: GOAL!!!!! James Forrest does it AGAIN with his right foot!! Celtic 1-1 Cluj. Back in it! LET’S GO BHOYS!
47′: Again, corner kick just came up short for Celtic.
47′: Corner kick opportunity comes up just short off of Ajer’s head. Great start. Crowd is in it!
46′: We are back for the second half! No changes for Celtic.
HT: Celtic FC 0-1 Cluj.
Initial thoughts: Elhamed has looked great. Cluj wants this match badly, and has pressured Celtic heavily. Celtic did not get out to the early start that they wanted. The refereeing has been inconsistent at very nest.
43′: Another atrocious attack by Cluj’s Rondon. No YC given.
41′: YELLOW CARD. Elhamed was issued the YC. Absolutely ridiculous. After 40-minutes of not issuing a single YC, Elhamed was given one for what could barely be considered a foul.
40′: YELLOW CARD. Rondon of Cluj was issued the YC. About time.
38′: James Forrest was just wide of of the goal. Still Celtic FC 0-1 Cluj.
37′: Free kick for Ntcham. After multiple reckless tackles by Cluj, a yellow card has not been issued yet.
34′: Celtic had a very promising attack. Edouard shot just over the top bar.
30‘: Foul on Mikey Johnston. Cluj is really trying to get another score. Very aggressive.
27′: GOAL. Celtic FC 0-1 Cluj. Cluj sneaks a header past Bain.
26′: Mikey Johnston was JUST wide. So close to putting Celtic FC on the board.
23′: Cluj #45 makes reckless tackle with the ball nowhere in sight on Christie. Incredible a yellow card was not given.
20‘: Great defensive play by Johnston. Gives Celtic the opportunity to go back on the attack.
19′: Despite early sloppy play, and a slow start, Elhamed is really showing his skill.
16′: Christie earns Celtic’s first corner of the game.
14′: Mikey Johnston makes a good run but ends up giving it away in the end.
10′: Cluj gets six men on the attack, but Celtic is able to stop the onslaught. Cluj is not messing around.
9′: Celtic got lucky in what should have been a successful goal. Celtic countered with a good attack but Edouard could not find the back of the net.
7′: CFR Cluj’s #37 already has three fouls against him in this match alone. Ntcham took a knock, but is back on his feet.
5′: Celtic has gotten to a quick start, and are setting the tempo for the match. Celtic looks confident.
2‘: Christie threatened on a well launched attack, but came up just short.
19:45 BST: Kick-0ff!! Let’s go Bhoys!
CFR Cluj Starting XI (4-4-2):
Giefrius Arlauskis, Andrei Burca, Paulo Vinicius, Camora, Mateo Susic, Damjan Djokovic, Luis Aurelio, Ciprian Deac, Mihai Bordeianu, Mario Rondon, Billel Omrani
Substitutes: Andrei Muresan, Mike Cestor, Yacouba Sylla, George Tucudean, Constantin Paun-Alexandru, Cosmin Vatca, Andrei Peteleu
Celtic FC Starting XI (3-4-3):
Scott Bain, Jozo Simunovic, Scott Brown (c), Ryan Christie, Ryan Johnston, Olivier Ntcham, Odsonne Edouard, Hatem Abd Elhamed, Kristoffer Ajer, Callum McGregor, James Forrest
Substitutes: Craig Gordon, Christopher Jullien, Nir Bitton, Leigh Griffiths, Vakoun Bayo, Lewis Morgan, Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo
Date/Time: Tuesday, August 13, 2019, 19:45 BST; 14:45 EST; 00:15 IST
Venue: Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland
Forecast: Partly cloudy, chance of rain. 16C/ 61F.