Ange Postecoglou had said pre-match that Cup Finals are rarely a smooth passage and so it proved on Sunday as Celtic lifted the League Cup and returned the first of three lost pieces of hard earned, and meekly lost, silverware to the Parkhead Trophy room.
The loss of David Turnbull as yet another hamstring injury hit the squad was the first hurdle to overcome, just as Celtic were settling into a period of first half dominance.
The headed opportunity misread by Carl Starfelt, and the missed push on the excellent Greg Taylor just prior, may have given many a ‘here we go’ feeling. But not as much as Paul Hanlon opening the scoring six minutes into the second half, in a game the Edinburgh side up to that point had managed to play almost entirely outside of Celtic’s penalty area. That the concession was once again from a set piece would have added to Ange’s rocky road concerns when it comes to cup finals.
But there are two teams competing in such finals, and if showpiece occasions don’t go to plan you have to assume that is going to be the case for both parties, and Hibs were soon to feel that luck in such games can also soon go from good to bad.
Fourteen seconds from the restart Hibs Captain, with his head possibly still in celebratory mode, didn’t hold his line alongside Ryan Porteous and the hero for Hibs turned to the villain of the piece as Celtic’s Kyogo showed not all superhero’s wear capes – until they don a Japanese flag in the post-match celebrations – as the gambled-on striker controlled a Callum McGregor lofted pass over the Hibs backline before finishing superbly to Macey’s inside post.
Hibs self-destruction and Celtic’s superhero were to align again 20 minutes later as Hibs criminally chose not to wait for a referee’s whistle and assumed an impending substitution would occur prior to the restarting of play, following a thump on the head for Liel Abada. Instead, Tom Rogic issued a reminder that you play until the referee stops the game, an instruction you learn in organised football somewhere between Primary three and four, and his sand wedge lofted pass was controlled sublimely by Kyogo before the lobbed finish surpassed the artistry of the first touch to leave Macey stranded and supply the goal that ultimately returned the League Cup to where even the trophy itself considers home.
Kyogo’s surprise and welcome return to the Celtic starting line-up lifted everyone connected to Celtic the world over, conversely you can only imagine the Japanese star’s inclusion demoralised everyone of a Hibs persuasion too. And it was our talisman’s inclusion that was ultimately the difference maker on the day.
Hibs had their own star striker and he too had two glorious chances, and whilst Kyogo bulged the net with both of his Hibs Kevin Nisbet couldn’t deliver and therein lied the difference in the destination of the trophy.
Firstly, Nisbet found Joe Hart blocking his effort, having turned Carlf Starfelt inside out – twice. Yet having done the hard bit a sensible lofted finish option was dispensed with and a low drive option taken and was subsequently well saved by Joe Hart in the Celtic goal. Nisbet then hit the post with the goal at his mercy, half a second after Hibs were denied a penalty for a Starfelt ‘shove’ that mirrored almost exactly the penalty denied to Greg Taylor in the opening 45 minutes, before Hanlon’s transference from likely Hibee hall of famer to target of supporter frustration was completed as the captain blasted the ball high over the bar with many of areas of the net open to being hit.
Hibs will have their complaints and post-game they were keen to point to injustices, but what this final really came down to was the star men tasked with hitting the back of their opponent’s net were on different levels. Kyogo was clinical and Nisbet was hesitant when it came to those milliseconds strikers have to choose the right option. One proved his goalscoring form can transfer from the mundane week to week expectations and onto the most pressured of big game stages, whilst the other showed work still has to be done when it comes to pressure cooker moments and finding the clarity of thought to deliver when needed.
For Ange Postecoglou and his cobbled together side, lifting the League Cup really has the feeling of the start of something special at Celtic. The first of our trophies, held by way of that Quadruple treble until being surrendered so pathetically last season, is now back where it belongs. Whether the others return this season or not, you get the impression return they will at some point, if the Celtic manager is given the backing in the transfer market his endeavours up to now have surely earned.
Much like that European tie against Betis, when the introduction of Kyogo was gambled on and backfired, the wager on Kyogo was repeated at Hampden yesterday and this time paid out handsomely.
And when you consider a lack of bravery in such moments is probably why David Gray rather than Jack Ross stood in the Hibs technical area yesterday, I’ll take a manager with the guts to make those big decisions any day and back him to get more right than he gets wrong.
With a manager and a striker who can deliver when it matters, and are willing to take a risk on occasion, Celtic will entertain along the way. But when it comes to big game hunting, like yesterday’s Cup Final win, Celtic have a couple of new additions who are willing to inject some calculated risk into their matchday decisions, and on such educated gambles, we can expect further success to follow. Fortune favours the brave after all, or so they say. Postecoglou and Kyogo both exhibited such bravery yesterday and the rewards followed close behind.
Niall J
Hibs wanted to bring a sub on? Watch it back, Scott Allen is still wearing his tracksuit!! He is nowhere near ready to come on.