It was nervy. It was imperfect. It was a hard watch. But at the end of the night, Celtic managed to come through with a win against YB to book their place in the knockout round of the Champions League. It has been a long time since the Hoops last made it past the first phase of Europe's elite competition. This is certainly an achievement worth celebrating.
Of course, it was not a great second-half performance from Celtic. For the most part, they looked flat and if not for a heroic double save from Kasper Schmeichel, a loss might very well have been on the cards for Brendan Rodgers' side.
Kyogo Furuhashi had the ball in the back of the net three times in the first 45 minutes but all were ruled out. Arne Engels missed a penalty. And Celtic had to rely on an own goal from YB, after Adam Idah's shot had been saved.
They will definitely take it though. A win is all that mattered on the night and they were able to deliver in that regard. Of course, the performance will have to be looked at and analysed over the coming days. For now, let's celebrate.
Chris Sutton's immediate reaction to Celtic win vs YB
Chris Sutton congratulated his former club for qualifying to the knockout phase after what was a tough watch. He wrote:
As comfortable as they come…Congratulations to Brendan Rodgers and Celtic on a fantastic achievement. Knock outs here Celtic come. That was a tough watch but frankly who cares. Great news for Scottish football 🍀👏👏
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) January 22, 2025
Celtic will be delighted to get through to the next phase of the Champions League for sure. It remains to be seen who awaits them in that round. It is going to be a memorable contest for sure.
For now, the league phase is not over for Celtic. They have an away trip against Aston Villa coming up as well. It will be a tough game but also a chance to improve their position.