It is safe to say that Celtic surprised a lot of people with their 4-0 win against Newcastle United. Yes, it was just pre-season and these results should not be taken too seriously. That being said, the magnitude of the scoreline was certainly one worth noticing. And it could have so easily been more one-sided in favour of the Scottish champions on a different day.
Of course, Celtic fans will be delighted. If the club make the right additions in the remainder of this summer transfer window, this might actually be capable of showing further progress in the Champions League while also challenging for the domestic treble again.
On the other hand, Newcastle United would have been left disappointed by the effort from Eddie Howe's side. Also, one of the major talking points on the day was the absence of Alexander Isak.
Howe took responsibility for the decision and it is one that drew quite a bit of criticism. As reported by 67 Hail Hail, the Newcastle United manager said:
"It was my decision (to leave Isak) out.
“I decided to send him home due to all the speculation around him.
“The last thing he wanted was to be sat in the stands watching. That wasn’t fair to him. But I am confident he will be a Newcastle United player come the end of this window."
Eddie Howe slammed for comments after losing to Celtic
Of course, those are comments that did not sit well with quite a few people in the football media. Craig Burley told ESPN:
"Ridiculous statement, isn’t it? ‘I sent him home because it wasn’t fair to him to sit in the stands.
“What kind of nonsense is that? "
The result will be even sweeter for Celtic fans, considering the manner in which Howe had turned down the Parkhead job all those years ago. The Hoops clearly wanted him to be the one to become their manager in the summer of 2021.
Things had appeared to be in the final steps before Howe decided to walk away from the job. Things were tough at that point. So much so that the club even ended up putting out a statement regarding the failed pursuit for Howe, something teams do rarely.
Of course, it all ended up working out quite well for the Hoops in the long run. They ended up appointing Ange Postecoglou that summer. He turned things around very quickly and won five trophies in the following two seasons. That was followed up by Brendan Rodgers' return in 2023.