Celtic's Dominance Continues with 4-0 Victory at Dundee United
Celtic’s ruthless streak shows no sign of easing. On a sharp Tayside night, they ripped Dundee United apart again, another 4-0 mauling at Tannadice firing Martin O'Neill’s side into the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals and sending a pointed message ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League play-off.
Final Score: Celtic 4 - 0 Dundee United
Sinisalo riding his luck, but another shutout
Viljami Sinisalo walked off with a 7/10 and a second clean sheet in three games, yet he’ll know the story behind the numbers. The Finland keeper was beaten five times by the frame of his goal as Dundee United clattered woodwork and cursed their luck. Celtic were let off the hook more than once.
Sinisalo, though, will only see another shutout on the board. Safe hands, solid presence, but his distribution still jerks the occasional groan from the away end.
Donovan steps up as injuries bite
With Alistair Johnston crocked, the right-back slot suddenly feels like a big job. Colby Donovan, just 19, looks unfazed. The youngster was sharp on the overlap, tidy in the tackle and did enough to suggest he’ll hold that jersey for this week’s Champions League blockbuster.
The surprise? Third-choice Anthony Ralston didn’t even make the matchday squad.
Carter-Vickers and Trusty lock it down
Cameron Carter-Vickers is starting to resemble his old self again. The American is still a yard short in certain one-on-one races, that much is obvious after last season’s brutal Achilles injury. But in the air he was immense, winning everything and tightening a backline that always looks more secure when he’s marshalling it. He took Celtic’s only booking of the night, a small price for the authority he brought.
Alongside him, Auston Trusty did more than defend. He broke the deadlock. A brilliant glancing header from a corner in the first half set the tone and underlined why the USA World Cup defender looks increasingly settled next to CCV. O’Neill has little reason to meddle with this partnership. It looks like his first-choice pairing now.
Scales back, but left-back question remains
Liam Scales returned from his two-game league suspension and was dropped straight in at left-back with Kieran Tierney wrapped in cotton wool for LASK. The Irishman was steady enough, did his job defensively, but never really carried the same attacking menace Tierney brings.
Celtic’s need for a natural deputy in that role – someone who can genuinely hurt teams going forward – remains obvious.
McGregor still running the show
So much for the talk that Callum McGregor’s legs had gone. At 33, the captain remains Celtic’s metronome. He dictated the tempo, knitted play together and barely wasted a touch.
One lung-bursting surge into the box almost brought a goal for Kasper Hogh, McGregor timing his run perfectly before picking out the Dane. It summed up a performance that showed he’s still the man pulling the strings.
Oxlade-Chamberlain shows his class
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain celebrated his 33rd birthday with a first start of the season and reminded everyone that technique doesn’t age as quickly as legs. The former Liverpool and Arsenal midfielder sprayed passes around Tannadice, threading balls between United’s lines and opening them up with vision and weight of pass.
He tired after the break, which was no shock, but there’s clearly still a role for him in this squad.
Nygren, the G/A king, runs the show
Benjamin Nygren is on a different planet right now. Three games. Three goals. Three assists.
The Super Swede is Celtic’s G/A king and this was his finest outing yet. His corner found Trusty for the opener, his composure and awareness set up Sebastian Tounekti for the third, and then he took centre stage himself.
From 18 yards, Nygren thundered home Celtic’s fourth to complete the rout and seal a man-of-the-match display. Everything he touched in the final third seemed to carry danger.
Duran dazzles on the right
Camilo Duran cost £6million from Qarabag and already looks like a bargain. Nominally a striker, he’s been just as devastating off the right. The work rate is relentless, the movement clever, the hunger obvious.
He opened his Celtic account only minutes after Trusty’s header, reacting quickest to a loose ball in the area and finishing, though there was a hint of fortune with what looked like a deflection off Hogh’s hand in the build-up. The officials let it stand; Duran didn’t care. He has the look of a real find.
Hogh quiet on the scoresheet, not in the contest
After a stunning first-half hat-trick at Kilmarnock, Kasper Hogh couldn’t add to his tally here, but that doesn’t tell the full story. The Dane was a constant nuisance, battling centre-backs, chasing lost causes and linking play.
He helped create two goals – first being wrestled to the turf before Duran pounced, then holding the ball up brilliantly for Nygren, who slipped in Tounekti. No goal, but plenty of graft and influence. A solid 7.
Tounekti grabs his chance
Sebastian Tounekti frustrated last season. Not this time. On his first start of the campaign, the Tunisian winger was electric. He twisted the United defence inside out on a blistering counter-attack before squeezing the ball past two defenders and into the bottom corner for Celtic’s third.
He then returned the favour, feeding Nygren for the fourth. With Yang missing, Tounekti didn’t just fill a gap – he made a statement.
Bench cameos and new faces
From the bench, Mika Baur caught the eye in flashes. The energetic German looked every inch a like-for-like successor to wantaway Reo Hatate – dynamic, busy, always looking forward. He earned a 5 in limited minutes.
Dane Murray stepped in for Trusty and slotted in seamlessly at the back, a calm 4/10 showing that underlined his reliability. Luke McCowan, back on familiar ground after his Dundee days, replaced standout Nygren and couldn’t quite replicate last week’s goal from the bench at Rugby Park, but kept the tempo high.
James Forrest, evergreen and trusted, came on for Hogh, allowing Duran to move centrally as the lone striker. Haissem Hassan, barely seen in pre-season, was given a late run and a rousing welcome. The Egyptian winger looked rusty, understandably, and picked up a 3, but the raw excitement around him was obvious.
Celtic leave Tannadice with another 4-0, another marker laid down, and a squad humming with form and competition. With a Champions League play-off looming, the only real question now is whether anyone can slow this momentum.
