Celtic have moved back above Rangers in the Scottish Premiership title-race with a win at Aberdeen.
It was very much a game that Martin O’Neill’s side can tick off and move on from – it also makes Reo Hatate’s late equaliser at Ibrox an even more significant goal.
Kieran Tierney scored in a second consecutive game to get the champions off and running, and after a Kevin Nisbet equaliser from the spot, it was that man again with Benjamin Nygren grabbing the winner.
Here are five things we learned from the win…
Who is your Celtic man of the match from that HUGE win against Aberdeen?
Five things we learned from Celtic win vs Aberdeen
Benjamin Arthur’s surprise debut
Thrown in to start after an injury to Dane Murray in the warm-up, this was the first time in Benjamin Arthur’s career that he started a senior league match.
The Brentford loanee saw plenty of the ball, but was caught being too nonchalant on a couple of occasions.
Defensively, Arthur gets a pass, having shown his strength and capability in most of his duels.
A rough surface
Player safety was the reason for the fixture initially being called off, with the surface deemed too risky to play on.
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Tonight, the pitch was still in noticeably poor condition, particularly in the middle of the park. Daizen Maeda almost scored after a slip from Jack Milne in the second half, whilst Celtic’s Yang Hyun-Jun and Sebastian Tounekti both lost their footing on multiple occasions.
Quiet evening for Celtic’s wingers
Speaking of that pair…
Consistency has been the biggest thing lacking for both Yang and Tounekti in a season which has seen both show flashes of real quality.
We saw very little of either taking on Aberdeen’s full-backs, with Celtic’s own wide defenders playing a more prominent role.
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Viljami Sinisalo plays his part
When the margins are so fine, goalkeepers have to play their part – and Viljami Sinisalo’s save to prevent Nisbet from putting the Dons ahead shortly after the break was one of the most crucial of his Celtic career so far.
Not everyone is buying that O’Neill is telling the truth about the reason for Kasper Schmeichel’s absence, but if he is, the Finn is making a strong case to keep his place in the side.
A perfect record against Aberdeen
Celtic have now won all three of their matches against Aberdeen this season, under three different managers. It’s been that kind of season.
Tierney and Nygren were involved in goals in all three of those encounters – the sides could still meet in the Scottish Cup before the end of the season.
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