3 Talking points from Celtic’s impressive 2-1 win vs Lazio in the Europa League
Celtic staged a remarkable comeback in the second half to overcome Lazio 2-1 at Celtic Park on Matchday 3 of the UEFA Europa League on Thursday, as Neil Lennon’s side preserved their unbeaten run in the group stages of the competition.
Having secured a crucial point away at Rennes on Matchday 1 before demolishing Cluj at home before the international break, Celtic came into the game as the leaders in Group E and put up a wonderful show to edge past the Italian outfit.
The Hoops enjoyed a lot of possession in the first half and showed plenty of attacking intent against a Lazio side that looked prepared to sit back deep and play on the counter. Odsonne Edouard spurned an early chance before Ryan Christie struck the post with a thunderous left-footed effort from outside the box.
Lazio, though, found the opener much against the run of play when Manuel Lazzari capped off a brilliant counter-attacking move with a fine finish to put the visitors ahead five minutes before the interval.
Things could have gone worse for the Hoops after the restart had Joaquin Correa’s shot not ricochetted back off the post but Celtic finally found a much-deserved equaliser midway through the second half after Ryan Christie rippled the net with a fine curling finish, with Edouard grabbing the assist.
With star striker Ciro Immobile coming off the bench, Lazio had a couple of chances thereafter to take the lead, only for Fraser Forster to put his body on the line to deny veteran Marco Parolo.
Just when it seemed that the teams were going to settle for a draw, Christopher Jullien’s towering header off Christie’s corner in the last minute of regulation time sent the raucous home crowd at Celtic Park into waves of ecstasy as the Hoops capped off yet another fantastic night with three valuable points to take a step closer to knockout qualification.
Here are 3 talking points from Celtic’s victory over Lazio on Matchday 3:-
1. Ryan Christie proved his worth once again
Celtic didn’t have too many troubles in putting Romanian giants Cluj to the sword on Matchday 2 but it didn’t take long for them to understand that they would need to do a lot more to break Lazio down.
Simone Inzaghi’s disciplined approach ensured that the Hoops didn’t have too many clear-cut openings to exploit in the first half despite teasing the crowd with some good progressive play and some delicious link-up in the final third.
On a night where Callum McGregor, Edouard and Mohamed Elyounoussi weren’t anywhere near their sparkling best, Ryan Christie once again emerged as the saviour for the Scottish champions, as the 24-year-old constantly popped up in the right areas to link up with his teammates.
Christie’s movement was quick, passing was slick, and commitment was absolutely top-draw as the playmaker once again reminded the fans of his ability to deliver the goods on the European stage.
The former Aberdeen star has already racked up an impressive tally of 12 goals and 6 assists in 20 appearances across all competitions and his second-half strike against Lazio took his tally in Europe to six for the season.
As per whoscored, Christie attempted 45 passes with a success rate of 86.7%, including 3 key passes, 2 tackles and 5 shots against Lazio. Those numbers are certainly impressive for someone who is a central attacking midfielder by trade.
2. Jullien the hero once again but Ajer and Bolingoli-Mbombo poor defensively
Celtic parted with a fee of £7million, regarded as staggering by Scottish standards, to sign Christopher Jullien from Toulouse in the summer and what a massive bargain the centre-back is proving himself to be!
The Frenchman was as solid as a rock at the back for the Hoops over the entirety of the ninety minutes and it is hard to recall even a solitary moment of sloppiness in what was a monumentous display on a European night.
Jullien brought his strength and fearless tackling into play to thwart Lazio on a number of occasions, maintained his composure on the ball in crucial situations and got the better of the opposition’s strikers in the air before grabbing the headlines with an excellent headed finish late in the game to send Celtic Park into waves of euphoria.
As per whoscored, Jullien had a pass success of 86%, including 2 aerial duels, 5 tackles, 2 clearances, 1 interception and 6 successful long passes.
While Jullien was undoubtedly one of Celtic’s standout performers on the night, the likes of Kristoffer Ajer and Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo struggled to cope with the opposition on a number of occasions.
In fact, both the defenders were culpable for Lazio’s opener, as Bolingoli-Mbombo found himself in no-man’s-land during the counter-attack and Ajer just didn’t do enough to close down Lazzari at the near post.
Bolingoli-Mbombo showed a lot of eagerness to burst forward with pace but was caught napping defensively while Neil Lennon will be relieved that Celtic weren’t made to pay for Ajer’s ineptitude in the second half as well.
3. This Celtic team certainly has the character
Despite establishing themselves as the undisputed champions in Scotland over the last eight seasons, Celtic’s character, mentality and resilience have been called into question numerous times on the European stage.
However, their comeback on Thursday night was a reminder of the fact that the current team led by Neil Lennon does have what it takes to make an impact in Europe.
Things could so easily have fallen apart for the Hoops in the second half after Lazio scored the opener much against the run of play but Celtic never really looked deflated and it was quite apparent from the body language of the players that they never lost hope.
Lazio went into the game as the clear favourites but Celtic showed the desire and the hunger to take the game to the opposition and they never really found themselves under the cosh, which has so often been the case with them in European competitions in recent years.
The hosts were hardly ever pinned back inside their own half and some of the build-up play in the final third suggested that this Celtic team is not only about individuals.
Despite the likes of Forrest, Edouard and McGregor having a relatively poor game by their lofty standards, others like Christie and Jullien rose to the occasion to seal all three points.
Neil Lennon also deserves a fair share of the credit for instilling some much-needed winning mentality in the squad, whilst he also caught the eye with his in-game management skills that saw Celtic switch to a back-three in the second half.
In the end, the Hoops staged a remarkable comeback to make it a night to remember for the fans.
