Diego Laxalt

Signed Match Shirt

v St Johnstone

06/12/2020

Scottish Premiership
Sunday, December 6, 2020
Celtic Park

CELTIC… 1
(Elyounoussi 82)

ST JOHNSTONE… 1
(Kane 79)

It was a day of frustration at Celtic Park as the Hoops drew 1-1 with St Johnstone. Chris Kane gave the visitors the lead with 11 minutes of the match remaining, a goal that was cancelled out three minutes later by substitute, Mohamed Elyounoussi. But Neil Lennon’s side were unable to fashion a winner.

In a first-half of few chances, Odsonne Edouard came closest to giving the Hoops the lead on 22 minutes after he was set through by a precise Callum McGregor pass, but the French striker’s effort was saved by Zander Clark.

Before that, Tom Rogic had come close with a header from eight yards out, but he couldn’t direct his effort on target.

St Johnstone had two chances in the first-half – the first on 10 minutes when Stevie May’s snapshot from six yards out was headed clear by Nir Bitton, although the ball was going wide. And at the end of the half, the visitors attacked down the left-hand side, but May couldn’t connect with Austin McCann’s cross into the box.

Into the second half and, again, it was May with an effort for the Saints, but he fired his shot high and wide from the edge of the area.

St Johnstone had their goalkeeper to thank for staying level on 52 minutes when he saved a Nir Bitton header from a Christie corner, and the ball was scrambled clear.

Leigh Griffiths came on for Scott Brown, and his corner on 69 minutes was headed over by Chris Jullien. Six minutes later, Clark was again on hand to deny the Hoops. This time it was a 25-yard shot from David Turnbull which tested the keeper. The Celtic substitute’s effort took a deflection, but the keeper managed to push the ball round the post.

On 79 minutes, it was St Johnstone who grabbed the opener. A ball through the inside left channel was fired across the six-yard box, and Chris Kane slid in to knock it into the Celtic net.

Mohamed Elyounoussi was brought on for Kris Ajer and his first contribution was to head a Ryan Christie cross into the back of the net for the equaliser on 82 minutes.

Four minutes later, Christie came close, cutting inside and firing a shot on target from a tight angle, but it was saved by Zander Clark. It was to be Celtic’s last clear-cut chance of the game.

CELTIC: Barkas, Jullien, Bitton, Brown (Griffiths 58), Christie, Rogic (Turnbull 67), Edouard, Frimpong, Ajer (Elyounoussi 81), McGregor, Laxalt (Taylor 46).
Subs: Bain, Klimala, Soro, Ntcham, Elhamed.

ST JOHNSTONE: Clark, Rooney, McCart, Gordon, Tanser, McNamara, Bryson (Craig 85), McCann, May, Wotherspoon, O’Halloran (Kane 25).
Subs: Parish, Kerr, Hendry, Melamed, Ferguson, McFarlane, Denham.

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