Hibernian manager David Gray reckons his team were ‘lucky’ to escape the first half with just a two-goal deficit to Celtic such was the Bhoys’ dominance.
Nicolas Kuhn got himself on the scoresheet with a tidy close-range finish within three minutes before captain Callum McGregor rifled a top-corner screamer past Josef Bursik.
Celtic were well on top in the opening 45 minutes. Hibs looked a yard behind the Bhoys all over the pitch and couldn’t handle the passing combinations from the champions.
The second half was a little more competitive but Hibs couldn’t muster a single shot on target throughout the match.
Gray recognised the gulf in quality between his two sides after the full-time whistle and warned his team they need to shape up for next week’s trip to Celtic Park in the Scottish League Cup.
David Gray on ‘dominant’ Celtic vs Hibernian
The Hibs boss said [Edinburgh Evening News]: “Playing against Celtic will always be a test. We know we need to be better. But I believe we will be.
“It’s clear for everyone to see that you can’t start the way we did, give Celtic a goal after three minutes, and then allow them to get into their flow. Because they’re a very good side.
“The thing that concerned me the most was the lack of composure on the ball at times. We knew what we were going to face, even though some of the players had never faced it before. So they are learning. I’m learning about my players. But that was the most frustrating thing, because that is the top end of Scottish football.
“We need to learn quickly. Because we face it again in seven days’ time. So we need to learn that giving them a goal after three minutes makes it a long afternoon. Up until half-time, we carried nowhere near enough threat. A lot of individual errors. Celtic dominated from start to finish in that 45 minutes – and we were lucky to go in just 2-0 down.”
Brendan Rodgers also wanted a bigger margin of Celtic victory
In his post-match interview, Gray’s counterpart Brendan Rodgers also noted that Celtic could have been more clinical in front of goal and punished Hibs further.
That wasn’t to be, but it’s clear that the team are full of confidence right now. No team in Scotland will fancy plying the Bhoys on current form.
There’s still work to be done to Rodgers’ overall squad and the second half on Sunday was a little flat, but Celtic undoubtedly look improved on the pitch over the last eight months. Everything is heading in the right direction.
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