Kieran Tierney has revealed that Celtic had a secret gameplan that they managed to pull off against Utrecht.
Celtic beat Utrecht 4-2 to qualify for the next stage of the Europa League, where they will face one of Stuttgart or Ferencvaros in the play-offs.
There were stages where Martin O’Neill’s side were playing some really sumptuous stuff and produced some well-worked goals.
One goal had clearly been worked on the training ground, and Tierney spilled the beans after the victory.
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Is Kieran Tierney back to his best at Celtic?
Celtic’s corner tactic worked for opening goal
Benjamin Nygren got Celtic off to the perfect start by opening the scoring inside the first 10 minutes.
That took his contribution to 19 in total, in terms of goals and assists, and had Tierney to thank for it.
The left-back’s quick-thinking caught Utrecht off guard and the boyhood Hoops fan admitted it was something that had been worked on.
He told Celtic TV: “We had a few chances and we took them and that’s been the case this season – we’ve created a lot of chances and not took them but this time it was different.
“We had said that if the corner was on to play quick and just get the tempo of the game up, and it worked. The first corner we did it, everyone was alive to it and knew it was happening, so it was good.”
Who are you picking?
Kieran Tierney is getting better and better
It was a slow start on his return to Glasgow but Tierney is now starting to look back to his best.
Playing the full 90 minutes is one thing, performing for the duration of the game is another.
We are now starting to see that as each game passes by, which can only be a good thing for the Hoops.
Marcelo Saracchi’s return from injury will be most welcome for extra support, but the 28-year-old is finally showing the signs of the player we wanted to see.
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