Battling Bhoys Back From The Brink

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Celtic 3-2 Aberdeen

A last-gasp, close-range winner was enough to give Celtic all three points after a fantastic match with Aberdeen at Celtic Park.

With ten minutes to go, Celtic were trailing 2-1, but late goals from Scott McDonald and Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink were enough to win the match for Celtic.

The only player in the Celtic starting line-up who didn't start in the 3-1 victory over Kilmarnock last week was Glenn Loovens, who started in place of Gary Caldwell. There was still no place in the starting line-up for McGeady, who was on the substitutes bench.

The match started at a slow pace with few chances for either side in the first ten minutes. But even at this early stage, it was clear to see that Celtic's strike-force were working well together. This good work paid-off after 14 minutes. Georgios Samaras drove forward on a good run and the ball made its way to Scott Brown who's cut-back to Vennegoor of Hesselink was perfect. Vennegoor of Hesselink coolly slotted the ball past Aberdeen goal-keeper Jamie Langfield from the six yard line.

However, Aberdeen responded to going a goal down by going on the offensive and a header by Zander Diamond was cleared off the line by Mark Crosas. The game continued to half time with god play from both teams, but with very few clear cut chances falling to either team.

Celtic stated the second half brightly, with Jamie Langfield being tested by efforts from Samaras and Nakamura. But it was Aberdeen who got the next goal, with former bhoy Charlie Mulgrew slotting the ball home from 15 yards. Minutes later, Mulgrew doubled his and Aberdeen's tally with a fantastic free-kick that bet Boruc and gave the Dons the lead.

Immediate changes were made by Gordon Strachan, with prolific striker Scott McDonald on for Marc Crosas. Aiden McGeady had been introduced to the action a few minutes earlier, in place of Shaun Maloney.

Celtic responded to going down by attacking the Aberdeen goal fiercely. Aiden McGeady picked the ball up on the win and found Scott McDonald with his cross. McDonald didn't miss from a yard out and Celtic were back on level terms.

With the clock ticking, a draw seemed on the cards but Vennegoor of Hesselink managed to squeeze the ball into the net in injury time, sending the Celtic fans and technical area wild. Aberdeen will be disappointed they didn't get anything from the match, but it was another trademark come-back from Celtic, who left it late, as usual.