Celtic recorded one of their most impressive European results in the last five years as Christopher Jullien’s late header stole victory against Lazio.
The Italian Cup winners led through a first-half Manuel Lazzari strike before Ryan Christie levelled matters with an emphatic finish. But the headlines were saved for Jullien who nodded in a late winner when found unmarked from a corner.
Here’s how we rated the Celtic stars.
Fraser Forster – 9
The former England international may steal most of the attention from the game after a string of terrific saves in the second-half. He was perhaps questionable for Lazzari’s goal but made up for that with three terrific stops late on. The final one in stoppage time from a stunning Danilo Cataldi dipping volley was the pick of the bunch – and brought Celtic Park to its feet. A wonderful night for the Great Wall.
Hatem Abd Elhamed – 6
Celtic’s Israeli right-back didn’t have his best night before being subsituted for his compatriot Nir Bitton after 83 minutes. It actually seemed as if he’d gone off earlier given the drama that followed his departure.
Kristoffer Ajer – 7
The Norwegian was perhaps guilty of allowing too much time to Lazzari for the visitors’ opener but he was much better in general. He read the game well and was strong in the air. More like it.
Christopher Jullien – 9
It would be easy to give the Frenchman a high rating just for his late exploits, but the truth is that he was terrific throughout. Imperious in the air and strong in the tackle – we’re really starting to see what all the fuss was about in the summer. Jullien can count on this as his finest night in a Celtic shirt.
Boli Bolingoli – 6
The former Rapid man started the game pretty well and was a real outlet in the first-half. However, his impact on the game lessened after the break and he was taken off after 85 minutes. He was steady without being anything spectacular.
Scott Brown – 8
The captain led the way again in the Celtic midfield and held his own against the terrific Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. Brown read the game well and rarely gave it away – unlike some of his midfield teammates. His late deflected shot won the corner from which Jullien scored.
James Forrest – 5
The winger didn’t have his best night but that was perhaps down to how well the Italians marshalled him. Forrest routinely found himself up against two or three men when in possession – with former Liverpool man Lucas Leiva doing a great job of nullifying him. He’ll have far better nights.
Ryan Christie – 7
The young attacker put in the kind of industrious performance we’ve got used to seeing in Europe. Christie gives us so much in both an attacking and defensive sense in the Europa League and that was shown once again. His end product was pretty poor though, other than when he swept Odsonne Edouard’s pass into the net for the equaliser.
Mohamed Elyounoussi – 5
Like James Forrest on the opposite wing, Elyounoussi really struggled to get into the hectic match. He saw plenty of the ball in the first-half but gave it away all too easily. It was no surprise to see him hooked first, replaced by Tom Rogic.
Odsonne Edouard – 6
The big Frenchman had a quiet night by his standards but he could never be accused of going missing. He was an option from the start of the game until the end but had few chances to score. However, his assist for Christie shouldn’t go unnoticed.
Substitutes
Tom Rogic (5) had around half an hour to put his stamp on the game but didn’t really manage to. Nir Bitton and Jonny Hayes were both late subs and didn’t contribute enough to get a rating.
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