Celtic 0-5 Paris Saint-Germain match report
Ewan Murray was at Celtic Park for The Guardian and here’s his hot-take at the final whistle. Tune in later for Ewan’s more considered rewrite with added quotes from Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers.
Scott Brown speaks ...
The Celtic captain has this to say: “We are disappointed with the result, but they’re a great team and they played very well ... we’ll bounce back from this. First half we were a little bit disappointing and we failed to get to grips with the game. Second half we were a little bit positive and put them on the back foot but because we were pressing so high up the pitch we let them score two good goals.”
Elsewhere in Group B: It’s finished Bayern Munich 3-0 Anderlecht in Bavaria, with Joshua Kimmich scoring the German side’s final goal in the knockings. One suspects Celtic and Anderlecht will be duking it out for third place and the privilege, such as it is, of dropping into the Europa League after Christmas.
Full time: Celtic 0-5 Paris Saint-Germain
Peep! Peep! Peep! It’s all over at Celtic Park, where Celtic have been given a lesson in football while suffering their highest ever home defeat in Europe. They were totally outclassed by PSG, whose goals came courtesy of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and an Edinson Cavani brace. Mikael Lustig chipped in with another, scoring into his own net when the match was well beyond his side.
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90+2 min: PSG ping the ball around for fun as Celtic’s exhausted players wait for the final whistle to put them out of their misery.
90 min: PSG continue to make Celtic look very ordinary indeed as the clock ticks down and a nightmarish evening draws to its conclusion. Brendan Rodgers’s side have been absolutely battered tonight and while we’re obliged to say there’s no shame in losing to PSG, one can’t help but feel too many of the home players have failed to do themselves justice tonight.
86 min: Having sprinted into the Celtic penalty area at full pelt, Cavani dives to meet a cross from Kurzawa as it bounces up off the turf on the edge of the six yard box and from a tight angle somehow manages to use the pace of the delivery to steer his header across the face of goal and into the top corner beyond the reach of Craig Gordon. It’s hard to do it justice with mere words, but that’s one of the best headed goals I have ever seen.
GOAL! Celtic 0-5 PSG (Cavani 85)
Edinson Cavani scores with a ridiculously good header. That is an absolutely sensational finish.
GOAL! Celtic 0-4 PSG (Lustig 82og)
Mikael Lustig scores into his own net from near enough point-blank range after Julian Draxler had got around Scott Sinclair far too easily and shot towards the near post. Craig Gordon could only half-parry the ball, which carried through to Lustig and ricocheted into the net.
82 min: Celtic have made their final substitution, with James Forrest coming on for Patrick Roberts.
79 min: Elsewhere in this group, it’s Bayern Munich 2-0 Anderlecht, with Thiago Alcantara having doubled the Bavarian side’s lead in the 65th minute. Scanning the scores from elsewhere in the Champions League, there are a worrying number of turkey shoots taking place in a competition where the group stages seem increasingly redundant. Of the 32 teams who took part the group stages last season, Tottenham were the only club from the richest 16 that did not advance to the knockout stages.
78 min: We’re shown a slow motion replay of Neymar getting all up in Tony Ralston’s grill, presumably on the back the yellow card he was shown for diving over the teenager’s challenge. Neymar looks most displeased and Ralston responds by laughing in his face.
77 min: Kieran Tierney tries to play Odsonne Edouard in behind the PSG defence, but the substitute is penalised for offside.
75 min: Neymar gets booked for a dive, prompting the loudest cheers of the night from the home crowd. He’s not too popular round Celtic Park way.
71 min: Neymar misses another gilt-edged chance, shooting wide when scoring looked easier. Seconds previously, PSG had appeals for a penalty turned down when a Kylian Mbappe shot may or may not have hit Tony Ralston’s hand. I’d need to see a replay to be sure, but it looked like it hit his chest to me.
68 min: Celtic substitution: Leigh Griffiths off, Odsonne Edouard on. The 19-year-old substitute is on loan at Celtic from PSG, but is allowed play as there are no silly rules or contractual clauses precluding loanees from playing against their parent clubs in the Champions League
68 min: Neymar shoots high over the bar from just inside the Celtic penalty area after being teed up by a wonderful Draxler pull-back in the wake of liquid build-up play from PSG. He should have done better with the goal at his mercy and only Craig Gordon to beat.
65 min: Celtic have been so much more impressive in this second half - this time it’s Patrick Roberts who drives into the PSG penalty area, only to be dispossessed by Kurzawa. The referee awards a goal kick, but the furious Celtic winger thinks he should have had a corner and kicks the ball away in frustration. The lenient referee spares him a booking.
64 min: More good, decisive play from Scott Sinclair, who beats Marquinhos on his outside and stings the palms of Areola with a shot towards the near post from a very tight angle. A corner for Celtic, from which nothing comes.
63 min: A Tom Rogic through-ball is defected wide by the heel of Layvin Kurzawa but the referee awards a goal kick to PSG, rather than a corner.
63 min: Better from Sinclair, who drives forward and unleashes a shot. Marquinhos blocks his effort.
62 min: PSG substitution: the outstanding Adrien Rabiot is replaced by Julian Draxler.
57 min: Kieran Tierney picks up a pass from Tom Rogic on the left flank and drills a low ball towards Scott Sinclair in the centre. Sinclair’s control lets him down and PSG clear. I’m a fan of Sinclair’s, one of the more naturally gifted players on the Celtic team from whom I expected more tonight. He’s been very disappointing thus far.
56 min: Their team may be three goals behind, but Celtic’s supporters are in fine voice as they try to cheer the home side on.
54 min: Ralston is booked for a late tackle on Thiago Motta. That yellow has been a long time coming - he’ll need to be careful.
53 min: Great play for Tony Ralston, who barges his way past two players into the PSG penalty area only to run out of road on the edge of the six-yard box. He goes to ground and there are loud appeals for a penalty, but none is forthcoming. In the BT Sport commentary box, Chris Sutton criticises Tom Rogic for not being up in support of his young team-mate.
51 min: Celtic have enjoyed more possession in the opening five minutes of this half than I can recall them having in the entire first period, but that may be down to PSG taking their foot off the gas knowing they have a three-goal cushion.
50 min: Patrick Roberts attempts to pick out Olivier Ntcham with a pull-back to the edge of the PSG penalty area, but Thiago Silva, who has been outstanding this evening, reads the winger’s intention and cuts out the pass.
48 min: Rogic and Ntcham combine well in midfield and the Frenchman plays the ball wide to Kieran Tierney. His attempted cross is cleared and PSG go on the counter-attack. Rabiot cuts in from the left and fires over from the edge of the Celtic penalty area.
47 min: Jozo Simunovic loses the ball to Adrien Rabiot on the edge of his own penalty area, but does well to win it back. The ball’s played forward, where Leigh Griffith attempts to knock down a diagonal from deep from Kieran Tierney for Scott Sinclair when a header on goal looked the more sensible option.
Second half: Celtic 0-3 PSG
46 min: Celtic get the ball rolling for the second half with Tom Rogic on for Stuart Armstrong, who had a very quiet first half.
Elsewhere in Group B: Bayern Munich lead Anderlecht 1-0 at half-time, courtesy of a Robert Lewandowski penalty. Anderlecht are down to 10 men after Sven Kums was sent off in the 11th minute.
There’s no shame in losing to PSG but ... in my opinion far too many of Celtic’s players aren’t performing well enough. Jozo Simunovic’s foul on Edinson Cavani to concede the penalty that gifted PSG their third goal was moronic, while far too many Celtic players are surrendering possession too easily on the rare occasions they actually get the ball. Out on the right flank, Patrick Roberts has been Celtic’s stand-out player but unfortunately that’s not saying a great deal.
Half-time: Celtic 0-3 PSG
The referee ends Celtic’s first half misery after 45 minutes in which the Scottish champions were had their pants pulled down and their bottoms spanked repeatedly by their French opponents. They’ve been given a real schooling in the art of possession football and have been utterly outclassed. Nobody expected them to do a great deal better, but this must be painful viewing for their fans.
45 min: Scott Sinclair manages to fire off a shot on goal and brings a good save out of Areola at the near post of his PSG goal.
43 min: Play resumes after a break prompted by a spectator running on to the pitch and, according to the Guardian’s man at Celtic Park, attempting to boot Kylian Mbappe. Like most of Celtic’s player’s who’ve tried to do the same thing during the first half, he didn’t get near him before being escorted from the pitch.
A punter has just run on the pitch and attempted to boot Kylian Mbappe. He missed.
— Ewan Murray (@mrewanmurray) September 12, 2017
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GOAL! Celtic 0-3 PSG (Cavani 40)
Cavani makes no mistake, sending Craig Gordon the wrong way rifling his eighth goal of the season (already!) into the top right-hand corner. That’s a great penalty and now each member of the most expensive forward line every assembled has scored.
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Penalty for PSG!
40 min: Jozo Simunovic tugs on the arm of Edinson Cavani in the Celtic penalty area as the PSG striker sprints past him and is booked by the referee, who also points to the spot.
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39 min: Stuart Armstrong is the latest Celtic player to squander possession, under admittedly ferocious pressure from a PSG side that have way too much class for them.
35 min: Lurking behind Edinson Cavani, who swiped at fresh air as he attempted to convert a low Marco Verratti cross, Kylian Mbappe made no such mistake as he sent the ball whistling past the helpless Craig Gordon. Celtic are in all sorts of bother here.
GOAL! Celtic 0-2 PSG (Mbappe 34)
Kylian Mbappe side-foots into the roof of the net from about seven yards out to double PSG’s lead.
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32 min: Good work from Roberts, who picks up the ball on the right again, before coming inside on his left foot. He attempts to pick out Scott Sinclair with a cross, but overhits his delivery.
31 min: From the free-kick, Leigh Griffiths attempts to cross the ball into the PSG penalty area, but fails to clear the first man. Adrien Rabiot heads clear.
30 min: with half an hour gone, PSG continue to force Celtic’s players to chase shadows. Patrick Roberts gets on the ball on the right flank, surges forward, cuts inside and is fouled. Free-kick for Celtic, halfway inside the PSG half and wide on the right.
27 min: With the ball at his feet and his back to the play on the touchline, Adrien Rabiot takes out two Celtic players with a nifty bit of footwork to pick out Neymar. Amazing skill.
24 min: A replay shows it was thiago Motta that fouled Scott Sinclair to win possession for PSG in the build-up to their goal ... except it wasn’t actually a foul. Celtic’s players may have been enraged by the ref not stopping play, but it looks as Sinclair tripped over his own feet.
22 min: Verratti concedes a free-kick about 40 yards from his own goal and Leigh Griffith stands over it. It’s a wonderful effort that’s heading for the top right=-hand corner until PSG goalkeeper Alphonse Areola gets across to palm it way. That was a sensational free-kick by Leigh Griffiths.
21 min: Ralston switched off there, but his lapse in concentration was perhaps understandable as the PSG attack that led to Neymar’s goal began with a foul by - I think - Marco Verratti on Scott Sinclair.
GOAL! Celtic 0-1 PSG (Neymar 19)
Neymar opens the scoring for PSG with a fine clipped finish into the roof of the net. He ran in behind Ralston on to a ball down the inside left from Rabiot, then held off the defender to flick the ball over Gordon and into the goal.
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17 min: Celtic remain under the cosh, which is completely understandable considering what they’re up against. Nevertheless, on the rare occasions they do enjoy a bit of possession, they’re giving it away too easily. Olivier Ntcham is the latest player to needlessly lose the ball with a loose pass. Ultimately, his sloppiness leads to a PSG counter-attack in which Craig Gordon is forced to save smartly from a Cavani strike that bounced in front of him.
15 min: Edinson Cavani pokes home from close range, converting a low cross from the left, but is correctly flagged for offside.
14 min: Ralston is perhaps lucky to avoid a booking again, clattering into the back of Neyma as the PSG man received a pass. Neymar makes the most of the challenge, irritating Mikael Lustig.
12 min: Celtic get forward again, with Sinclair and Tierney combining well down the left flank. The ball’s crossed to Ralston on the right and he tries to get around Neymar and work a cross in, but is unable to muscle his way past the Brazilian.
11 min: PSG corner, with Mbappe winning it off Kieran Tierney. Back helping out in defence, Leigh Griffiths clears Thiago Motta’s low delivery at the near post.
10 min: Celtic get forward again, with Stuart Armstrong on the ball. He picks out Olivier Ntcham, whose shot from distance and pulls the ball wide. On his outside, Patrick Roberts was in acres of space and screaming for the ball.
8 min: Good play from Lustig, who intercepts a pass from Neymar to Mbappe and storms out of defence with the ball at his feet. The ball is played forward to Scott Sinclair on the left flank, who surrenders possession to Thiago Silva.
7 min: Dani Alves sends in an wonderful cross from the right, which Edinson Cavani fails to poke home from five or six yards after stretching every sinew. The early indications are that this is going to be a very, very long night for the home side.
6 min: PSG continue to dominate possession in these early stages, while both Celtic wingers – Scott Sinclair and Patrick Roberts - have already been guilty of losing the ball.
5 min: Layvin Kurzawa plays a ball down the inside left for Adrien Rabiot, whose cross is ridiculously overcooked.
4 min: Celtic struggle to get out of their own half as PSG probe. Kylian Mbappe tries a shot on goal but it’s blocked by Mikael Lustig.
3 min: Another early touch for Ralston, who heads a PSG ball into the box clear. Moments later, he’s penalised for a foul on Neymar out on the touchline and is perhaps lucky not to have been booked.
2 min: Tony Ralston gets his first touch, but it’s PSG who are dominating possession in the early stages. Neymar picks up the ball on the edge of the final third, shuttles into the centre and thinks about a shot before laying it off to Adrien Rabiot. Celtic have lined up in a 4-3-3, as have their opponents.
Celtic v PSG is go ...
1 min: PSG kick off and play is under way at Celtic Park.
The teams line up
The Champions League music rings out for the first time this season as the players line up, exchange handshakes and prepare for action. Celtic wear their customary home strip of green and white hoops, white shorts and white socks. PSG’s players are a vision in black shirts, shorts and socks. Our team of match officials are all Italian.
Not long now ...
The Celtic crowd, with Kenny Dalglish and Rod Stewart among them, give a stirring rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone before the teams emerge for the last of the pre-match formalities. Down in the tunnel, Scott Brown has his game face on as he prepares to lead his side out to a rapturous welcome. Off they go ...
Brendan Rodgers on his team selection
On the formation he’ll play and the selection of Tony Ralston: “In terms of the shape of the team, last season in the CL phase, we were very much set in terms of the 4-3-3,” he tells BT Sport’s Eilidh Barbour. “ That worked well for us and this is a level where the players need that simplicity in their game. I also think it’s about giving a young player big game experience. Whatever happens tonight, [Ralston] will learn and be a better player for it. Of course, Mikael [Lustig] can slot into the centre of defence.”
On whether or not his senior players have a duty to protect Ralston: “There’s a responsibility on everyone, not just the senior players. Look, if I didn’t think young Tony was capable of playing, then I wouldn’t put him in. He has a great temperament. It’s a great experience for him playing against one of the best players in the world and the rest of the team will help him.”
Armstrong in for Rogic
Stuart Armstrong is another surprise inclusion in the Celtic line-up this evening, in at the expense of Tom Rogic. It will be interesting to hear Brendan Rdgers’s reasoning behind his selection and that of Ralston.
Celtic v PSG line-ups
Celtic (4-3-3): Gordon, Simunovic, Ralston, Lustig, Tierney, Brown, Ntcham, Armstrong, Roberts, Sinclair, Griffiths.
Subs: De Vries, Bitton, Rogic, Edouard, Ajer, McGregor, Forrest.
PSG (4-3-3): Areola, Dani Alves, Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Kurzawa, Verratti, Thiago Motta, Rabiot, Cavani, Neymar, Mbappe-Lottin.
Subs: Trapp, Kimpembe, Lucas Moura, Meunier, Yuri, Lo Celso, Draxler.
Referee: Daniele Orsato (Italy)
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A shake-up in the Celtic defence ...
Mikael Lustig and Jozo Smuniovic will line up in central defence for Brendan Rodgers’s team, with Kieran Tierney at left-back and 18-year-old Anthony Ralston in at right-back. It’s a group stage debut for the youngster from Belshill, who has made just four competitive starts for Celtic.
PSG manager Unai Emery speaks
The PSG manager was quizzed at length by French reporters on his expensively assembled side’s prospects of winning this year’s tournament. “The important thing is to see progress this season,” he said. “There’s a lot of responsibility because I have good players at my disposal. However, there are a lot of good teams in the Champions League including Celtic, so we will need to be careful especially here at Celtic Park. We are looking forward to a good start. The players have worked well all week, but obviously we know it’s going to be a difficult match.”
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers speaks
Speaking at his pre-match press conference yesterday, Brendan Rodgers had this to say about PSG and his own team: “Their focus is on winning it. For us, 12-months ago we were just getting ready for our first game and I don’t believe we were anywhere near the level we are at now.We have developed a courage to play our game and have the courage to physically press and work teams. The attitude is everything in these games. If you stand off top-class players, they’ll punish you.
“We need to be educated in our pressure and how we press the game and how we play our natural game. I’m also looking to forward to seeing how we play in counterattack. At this level you have to stay calm, if you can’t press the ball and press the game then you have to be very organised and we have the players to do that.”
Early team and injury news
Moussa Dembele is back in training for Celtic, but till some way short of fitness after the hamstring injury that sidelined him in the qualifying rounds of this tournament. Central defenders Dedryck Boyata and Erik Sviatchenko are also out, which means Nir Biton and Jozo Simunovic are likely to continue their partnership in the the heart of Celtic’s defence. No pressure, lads. Having missed out on Celtic’s win over Hamilton on Friday.
Paris Saint-Germain will be forced to try and make do without Argentinian duo Angel Di Maria and Javier Pastore, who are out with thigh and calf injuries respectively. With Neymar, Killian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani to call upon, they may just cope.
Barry will be here shortly. Here’s Ewan Murray on the difficulties Celtic face balancing domestic and European campaigns:
Brendan Rodgers is well used to the great Celtic paradox. Supporters headed to Friday’s canter at Hamilton via a badly maintained lane, dodging beer cans and dog mess. Upon reaching the SuperSeal Stadium, the scene was of two permanent stands, an artificial pitch and the prospect of fierce clearances ending up in a supermarket car park. It seems faintly laughable to label such a fixture as preparation for the visit of Neymar and Paris Saint‑Germain.
It is understandable that Rodgers does not belittle the Scottish football landscape. More typical settings greet Celtic at Ibrox, Pittodrie, Tynecastle and Easter Road. While Celtic were pulling Hamilton apart 4-1, PSG were doing likewise at Metz, winning 5-1.
On Friday, Celtic’s manager pointed towards “the beauty of being up here” in respect of contrasting backdrops. He railed against the suggestion of Hamilton, or anywhere similar, being a useless precursor to Europe. “For me, it is irrelevant [where we are]. My concentration is on the pitch, I focus on the field. Hamilton was a big game for us.” And now? “We are now going to face one of the best teams on the planet.”
