A point for the Celtic Lions, but we should have got more.

Match report Celtic vs Ibrox Club
By Paulina Jaczek
Scottish Premiership
Sunday, 4th of May, 2025
Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow
Celtic…1
( Idah 56’ )
Ibrox Club…1
( Dessers 44’ )

So today was a another Glasgow derby between our Celtic Bhoys and Ibrox Club. Well, Ibrox Stadium is not the place I love writing about, because I have to be honest with you everytime I’m travelling by Glasgow’s Subway and pass that station I want that train to move faster straight away, because there’s something which scares me off there.

Let’s go back to January this year; I know that a lot of Celtic fans, myself included, don’t want to do that, but I want to focus on what happened with our Celtic Bhoys that day. Well, the answer is no-one knows, but that was so hard and disappointing. The Hoops just simply were hammered by 3-0, so today’s match ended not that bad, but it should’ve been a way better.

Let’s start with the absences. No Jota today, of course, and that’s a massive loss. I’ve been very sad since Friday and finding out that he’s going to be out a while. The knee injury from the title-clincher last week is going to keep him out for up to nine months, and with his knack for stepping up in the big games, that’s a real blow.

Kuhn was missing too—another big player, fresh off a two-goal masterclass in the last game. Losing both wide men hurt us.

We’re also still down our first choice keeper, but that wasn’t so bad; if not for Viljami Sinisalo—and I’ll say it, the lad is Schmeichel-level some days—we’d have had real trouble getting anything from this one. He pulled off two outstanding saves in the opening ten minutes, then came up big again later on. That draw? We owe it to him. Without him, that ends badly and we’re all chewing the carpet.

The Ibrox club thought they’d scored in the 25th minute—Raskin got his head on a Tavernier corner—but thankfully VAR did its job for once and ruled it offside. Shortly after that, Kelly tipped an Adam Idah effort over the bar, and just before half time, our Irish frontman got through on goal again but couldn’t convert.

Just seconds later, Dessers broke the deadlock, finishing smartly past Sinisalo, and we were 1-0 down at the break.

I said it at half time, and I meant it: “Celtic, my Glasgow Lions, I want to see the hunger. I want to see the fight. I want you to go out there and remind them who the champions are.” And fair play, we came out swinging.

Still, during the half time break today, I had that uneasy feeling. Celtic were pushing, they were fighting, but the same mistakes that haunted us in the last two games were still hanging around like a bad smell.

In the 57th minute, Adam Idah—who was brilliant all afternoon—put the ball in the net and it was flagged offside. VAR gave it the once-over and this time we got the rub of the green. 1-1. Game on.

Let me also say this: the ref? He was having a laugh.

A couple of our Bhoys picked up fouls for next to nothing, yet when one of theirs went in studs-up on a Celtic player it was nothing doing. Either he missed a lot on their side or he didn’t want to see things. Either way, shocking stuff.

It was a proper scrap to the end, both sides going for it. We were into added time, and we nearly nicked it at the death. Hatate surged forward and played in Maeda—our Japanese samurai—who tried to round the keeper. He got a hand to it, just enough to snuff it out. If that goes in, we’re talking wild scenes.

If he squares the ball to the two players waiting for it, Celtic fans would have raised the roof. Maybe they’d have banned us again.

So it ends 1-1. A point. Not what we wanted, but it keeps us on course. Three league games to go and then Hampden on the 24th of May for the cup final. A treble is still on the cards, and I’ll be there for it all—17th and 24th, I’m in Glasgow. If you see me, come say hello. We’re nearly there, folks. Let’s finish this right.

Celtic: Sinisalo, Ralston, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Taylor (Schlupp 79′), Engels (Paulo Bernardo 63′), McGregor, Hatate, Forrest (Hyunjun Yang 63′), Idah (Kenny 83′), Maeda

Subs: Trusty, Hyunjun Yang, McCowan, Schlupp, Nawrocki, Kenny, Paulo Bernardo, Bain, McArdle

Ibrox Club: Kelly, Tavernier, Souttar, Balogun, Jefté, Diomande (Danilo 93′), Barron, Raskin, Cerny (Igamane 66′), Bajrami (Hagi 66′), Dessers

Subs: Butland, Cortés, Nsiala, Kasanwirjo, Igamane, Hagi (Rice 83′), McCausland, Rice, Danilo