Celtic almost pull off stunning Friday night comeback vs Brighton in Premier League International Cup

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Celtic B played their latest fixture in the Premier League International Cup tonight, losing 4-3 away to Brighton & Hove Albion’s U21 side.

The match took place at the AMEX Stadium, where Brighton’s first team play in the English Premier League, giving the young Hoops a brilliant experience.

Unfortunately, the opening period didn’t go to plan and the home side found themselves 3-0 up thanks to Leigh Kavanagh and Mark O’Mahony, who scored a double.

Celtic did battle their way back into the fixture at 3-1 by the interval, with Mackenzie Carse cooly finishing after a strong Bhoys press forced an opportunity in the Brighton box.

Then, Rocco Vata showed off his pace, skill and finishing ability with an excellent second to make it 3-2 after 57 minutes.

Daniel Kelly subsequently produced an excellent first-time finish from a low cross into the box, banging it into the top corner for a 3-3 scoreline.

The youngsters built significant pressure on Brighton throughout the second half and created multiple opportunities, only to be thwarted by excellent goalkeeping and a bit of defensive resilience.

It was an open, exciting and lightning-quick 90 minutes. Unfortunately with what was almost the last kick of the game, Brighton netted a dramatic winner at 4-3.

Premier League International Cup valuable experience for Celtic B

Tonight was Celtic’s second fixture in this year’s edition of the youth tournament which pits the best of the English academies against select teams from around Europe.

Celtic were drawn in Group B and have future matches away to Chelsea and Southampton to contend with in December and January.

Finishing in the top two of their section, which also includes Valencia, Dinamo Zagreb and Lyon, would see the young Hoops progress into the quarter-finals. There is also a place for two of the best third-placed outfits across the three groups. Victories will be needed in the final two matches to have any hope of progression.

Regardless, tonight was a good showing from Stephen McManus’ and Darren O’Dea’s outfit and the youngsters can hold their heads high travelling back to Scotland despite defeat.

In other news, Brendan Rodgers definitively explains the transfer process at Celtic, why Mark Lawwell is needed.