Match Report: Celtic vs Aberdeen – Scottish Cup Final 2025
Scottish Cup Final
Saturday, 24 May 2025
Hampden Park, Glasgow
CELTIC…1
(Dorrington 39’ og)
Aberdeen…1
(Schmeichel 82’ og)
Aberdeen win 4-3 on penalties
Well, what can I say to all you Celtic supporters around the world?
Days like this happen. All we can do is stay faithful through and through, believing the best is yet to come. It was a bitterly disappointing afternoon for our Glasgow Celtic Lions as they lost 4-3 on penalties and watched the Scottish Cup slip into Aberdeen’s hands instead of ours.
I know it’s hard to take defeat, but come on, Celtic fans—wipe those tears, because fuck it, we are THE CHAMPIONS and THE MOST SUCCESSFUL CLUB in Scotland.
From the very beginning, I believed The Hoops would win it and that we would complete the Treble. And it looked like it too.
Celtic started well and dominated the first half. The breakthrough came in the 39th minute when Cameron Carter-Vickers battled for possession, and the ball ricocheted off Aberdeen defender Alfie Dorrington and into the net.
Celtic led 1-0 at half-time. It was not pretty. But it was deserved for the better team who had dominated possession.
I genuinely thought the dominance would continue until the final whistle, but I was wrong. The second half started a bit slower, but there was still hunger to score and the will to win. The Bhoys fought for every ball right up to the last minute. We had 21 shots on goal—at least three of those should’ve hit the back of the net.
Adam Idah, Daizen Maeda and Nicolas Kühn kept pushing for more goals in the second half. In the 72nd minute, Luke McCowan had a shot blocked inside the six-yard box—one of several near misses that could’ve sealed the game.
Aberdeen had chances too, and from the restart they looked dangerous. As I always say, if you miss too many chances, the other side will punish you. And that’s exactly what happened. In the 82nd minute, a freak own goal by Kasper Schmeichel levelled the match 1-1.
There was still hope in extra time. Jeffrey Schlupp unleashed a thunderbolt from 18 yards—it deserved a goal, but it smacked the crossbar instead. A stunning strike, agonisingly close.
Celtic pushed hard for the winner, but fate had other ideas.
It all came down to penalties, and heartbreak followed. We lost 4-3. Watching Callum McGregor suffer after his miss was painful. He looked gutted. I just wanted to hug him, tell him everything will be okay—we’re champions, Scotland’s most successful club, and another Treble is to be fought for next year.
This defeat hurt. Not just the players, but all of us. I cried too. We should have been the ones lifting that trophy, singing and celebrating. But we go again. We never stop. We had 82% possession—82%—and still didn’t win. Aberdeen had just 18% and nicked it on penalties. That stings.
So, to sum it up—thank you, Celtic FC, thank you my Celtic Lions, and thank you Brendan Rodgers for a brilliant season. Through triumphs and struggles, I’ve been with you, and I’ll be by your side to the end.
Next season, the Bhoys will come back stronger, sharper, and ready to score goals and lift trophies. So wipe away those tears, Celtic fans. We’re still the best team in Glasgow and Scotland. And we’ll win another Treble soon! I’m sure of it.
Fingers crossed for the Hoops in the summer transfer window. I’ll be right here, standing by you, Bhoys, until the end.
We need to look forward now to the summer sales and the introduction of more power, pace and energy and importantly more flexibility from Brendan in formation and strategy.
If we keep doing what we’re doing we’ll keep getting what we get.
Time for the prompting of some positive change and if Brendan’s not up to it then maybe he’ll be part of it
Firstly – Congratulations to Aberdeen FC 2025 Scottish Cup Winners…
And there ends the niceties…
Well what the fuck can you say about Celtic FC… Yesterday’s events have been in the post for a while now and yesterday they were duly delivered… All that possession and what do we have to show for it bar fuckin heartbreak.
I think we have to look at it that players do what the manager orders and why for the life of me they tried and tried and tried to walk the ball into the net when it was never gonna happen is beyond the pale – They failed and they failed miserably to do this and as always since day one with Brendan Rodgers there was no Plan B and quite simply there never fuckin will be with that man – Not now not fuckin ever…
All of us in the pub were screaming at the players to try a cross, a shot, anything but no, no, no, it was never happening, just tippy tippy to the left, tippy bloody tappy to the right, tippy tappy back the way, tippy tappy at 36.579’ degrees tippy tappy at 73.457’ degrees until we were sick in the teeth and then the ball was lost to the red wall of Aberdeen again and again and fuckin well again…
Look – Brendan Rodgers has entered 14 competitions as Celtic Manager and won 12 that’s pretty bloody impressive and can never be taken away from him, he has given us many joyful joyful days and I thank him eternally for all of that but I just wonder if next season should be his last one at Celtic FC…
His pig headed inability to change tack is a massive fuckin negative to himself but more importantly Celtic and he ain’t gonna change now. Schooled by Barry fuckin Fergushun – I mean just let that sink in – One point outta six v that elite ned of such global giants such as Alloa Athletic and Kelty Hearts, he won’t change and he won’t beat Sevco at Liebrox in August either now they have him sussed…
I also think that yesterday loss will have a helluva lot more implications than we think. I reckon had we prevailed it would have put fatal doubts in the minds of Sevco but now they might just see yesterday’s utterly pish and inept performance and get some gravitas from it and punish us more than they did this season and they sussed out Rodgers by 7 points to 4…
I think that Rodgers has taken Celtic as far as he can should slip away with our thanks for his trophy count at the end of next season…
He can fuck off back to Carnlough and enjoy a nice and deserved retirement, casting his fishing rod off the pier the same casts for six hours until the tide changes will suit him fine as he clearly doesn’t like change of any sort, he can also take his daughter crab fishing at the quayside steps and spunk himself to the high heavens watching the crabs going front side to side, backwards, side to side, side to fuckin side seeing as he loves such utter pish like that in football…
Thanks for delivering The League Cup Brendan even if put us thru the fuckin ringer…
Thanks very much for delivering The SPFL Title by such a fine margin once again…
But hang your fuckin head in black burning fuckin shame at yesterday’s disgusting performance and tactical inability to lift the ball off the deck – Had you took some education from Barry Fergushun how to score three goals by lifting the ball off the grass you might just have won the fuckin game – But of course you fuckin won’t !
12 out of 14 successes is impressive but when you think of Celtic’s resources and the likes of the poor opposition including a struggling broke Sevco, then maybe it is a given.
The 5 subs rule brought in during Covid only benefits one team and that is Celtic who are able to call on 5 first team players at any given time.
To be skelped by Clement and Ferguson 3 nil should have been a wake up call and kind of unforgivable.
Clachnacuddin, with you in every word you said. I have watched Celtic since the 60’s and for entertainment and edge of seat stuff, Rodgers serves up the worst spectacle that I can remember, it is horribly bad to watch. I have sat through some dismal games this season, games where yes they did get 3 points but it was like watching toe nails being cut.
Thanks Clach for giving me a laugh and cheering me up after that debacle yesterday, I think you’re a wee bit over the top in your criticism but I agree with most of it.
The pass, pass, pass would bore you to sleep, CCV and Scales going up for corners just to see us take short corners and the ball never coming in or else it hitting the 1st defender.
I thought after last week we would be more pacy and forward thinking at Hampden, but no, the same slow passing game, Hatate missing was a blow, as he’s the only player who’ll try a killer pass, I watched Luke McCowan at Dundee quite a bit last season and passing with pace and precision were part of his game, it looks to me as if it is getting coached out of him.
If a team are parking the bus in their penalty box then Wingers and W/B’s have to get to the by line and drag defenders out, we only did that sporadically, Johnston and Kuhn were terrific in doing that in the 1st half of the season but haven’t for a long time, same with Taylor and Maeda but that has dried up. Jota not being available has been a blow, but I think not starting Forest was the wrong decision.
Engels and Idah? both have shown promise but will have to step up a gear next season, at the moment there must be better out there.
Looking for some consolation I think we’ve got to be realistic, We’re in the top 24 in Europe and Champions of Scotland with an advantage of 17pts and 47 goal.
I think the challenge from Ibrox will be better next season, hopefully there will be decent signings coming in, plus KT. we’ll need them. BR had better get his coaching thinking cap on during his holidays, performances like the past 2 weeks isn’t good enough and one win from 5 against an average Ibrox team hasn’t looked good.
I couldn’t help notice that with 20 mins to go, the commentators were discussing what the Aberdeen manager was doing with his subs to change the game. The camera was focusing on him and he was animated and involved and seemed to have a good idea what to do and Aberdeen scored not long after, albeit with the help of Schmeichel, but you have to be in it to win it.
Rodgers, on the other hand usually replaces like with like and the system continues and it seems to me just hopes for the best.
As far as the board is concerned I can’t help thinking they have backed BR. 11 million for Engels and 9 million for Idah can’t be sniffed at. The former isn’t what we think and the tactics don’t suit the latter. Kind of not their fault.
You have it all spot on Clachnacuddin. I have been saying for months that Rodgers idea of football would drive fans to distraction, and it did so with me yesterday. Some say it is hard to win trebles and maybe so but yesterday it could not have been easier had we just gone for it in first half, a few shots at their keeper would have helped at least lift the spirits of fans and players. A total borefest of the same old slow side to side and backwards that has us struggle in many games. Had we lost by breaking some sweat, with their keeper having a good day, with shots just not coming off then maybe we would accept defeat better. Not this, 120 mins of total nothingness, thought we might learn given the bollocking supposedly meted out in the dressing room following a recent similar performance.
Sorry, but I can’t agree wholeheartedly with your perspective.
The club had the opportunity and the funds to strengthen but they didn’t.
Opportunity lost.