Kairat not afraid of Celtic atmosphere, says boss Urazbakhtin
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Scotsman
23 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Celtic vs Kairat Almaty player ratings: The statue, the dimmed light, one 4/10 and three 5's
Celtic will go into next week's Champions League second-leg playoff with work to do after a resolute Kairat Almaty held them to a surprise 0-0 draw at Parkhead on Wednesday. A toiling performance saw the home side struggle to break down a stubborn and organised Kazakh side, who caused Brendan Rodgers' men problems of their own on the break as they battled to a deserved draw. The Hoops' home support grew frustrated, with chants of 'sack the board' audible in the second half as the Hoops' frontline, in need of extra bodies, struggled to find the desired opener. Celtic will now return to domestic action as they host Livingston this weekend in the Scottish Premiership, before they head to Almaty in Kazakhstan for next week's second leg against Rafael Urakhtin's side on Tuesday, 26 August. Here's how The Scotsman rated the performance of each Celtic player in the 0-0 draw against Kairat Almaty at Parkhead: 1 . Kasper Schmeichel - 6 While the away side had seven shots at goal, none of them hit the target. A largely quiet night at Parkhead, until he was almost lobbed by a cheeky Edmilson lob from distance. Thankfully for the Dane, it sailed over his bar. | SNS Group Photo: SNS Group Photo Sales 2 . Alistair Johnston - 6 Looked to have hurt his hamstring while sprinting, which ended his night early after just 33 minutes. Replaced by Anthony Ralston. | Getty Images Photo Sales 3 . Cameron Carter-Vickers - 6 Dealt with a tricky, physical customer in Edmilson with ease, winning the majority of his duels. Nothing flashy, and did what he needed to do. | PA Photo Sales 4 . Liam Scales - 6 Like his defensive partner, he dealt with what was thrown at him fairly well. Won the most duels (9) in the match, and completed the most passes, little blame could be pointed at either centre-back during an underwhelming performance. | PA Photo Sales
Daily Record
23 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Celtic fan frustration boils over as 'sack the board' chants ring out during Kairat stalemate
The Scottish champions were held to a goalless draw in the first leg of their Champions League playoff with the Kazakhstan champions Brendan Rodgers might face an uphill battle convincing the Celtic board to part with their bank card. But the Hoops boss has an even bigger mountain to climb if he's to unlock the riches of the Champions League. Celts were given an Almaty scare at Parkhead last night after being held to a goalless draw by the unknowns from Kazakhstan. Having seen off Astana and Shakhter Karagandy in previous years, Celtic were heavy favourites to plant one foot in the £40million group stages. No wonder too, when you consider Kairat Almaty have only ever had one European adventure - a 2021/22 Conference League group stage appearance when they finished bottom of their section with just two points. But the Scottish champions won't be packing a home aggregate lead in the suitcase for next week's gruelling 4000-mile trek east as the Glasgow giants gamble throwing away a golden ticket to the revamped league phase. Rodgers made six changes to the second-string team that dismantled Falkirk 4-1 as his big hitters - including Cameron Carter-Vickers and Benjamin Nygren - were restored to the line-up. Yet unlike Friday night under the lights, there was no party atmosphere as they were held to a stalemate, leaving the tie wide open ahead of a gruelling 4,000-mile journey to Kazakhstan. Frustrated Rodgers has been crying out for signings this summer to bolster his depleted attacking options. And Celtic's lack of potency was there for all to see as they failed to break down a resolute Kairat Almaty backline - even with 10 minutes of stoppage time. Now, they stare at the prospect of Europa League football - unless they become the first Scottish side to win on Kazakh soil on Tuesday. AJ injury It's never a good sign when a player crumbles to the deck off the ball. Alistair Johnston looked stricken on the ground as he pulled up after racing back to cover a counter-attack. The Canadian international, who has made a brilliant start to the season, required medical attention and was eventually stretchered off at 35 minutes. Deputy Anthony Ralston was subbed on as his replacement as he linked up with James Forrest down the right-hand side. However, Johnston's prognosis will be a major concern for Rodgers, especially amidst a crucial run of games. It looks almost certain that the 26-year-old will miss Saturday's visit of Livingston, next week's jaunt Kazakhstan and the small matter of a Glasgow derby at Ibrox. Rodgers has made it clear he's in the hunt for a new left-back to serve as back-up to Kieran Tierney. If Johnston is out for the long term, he'll need to dip into the market for another right-back too. Our of tune Playing against a team ranked 315th in UEFA's coefficients - even lower than St Johnstone - most fans thought it'd be a case of how many against an unknown side from Central Asia. But the Hoops looked completely out of sync, especially in the first-half. Nothing clicked and disgruntled fans made their voices heard as one too many passes went astray. The ever-reliable James Forrest, Swedish playmaker Nygren and Japanese maestro Reo Hatate were guilty of overcooking too many balls. It was a thoroughly disappointing first 45 minutes from the Hoops, who could have no complaints about going into the break goalless. In fact, Almaty came close to going ahead, only for Valeri Gromyko's close-range tap-in to be disallowed for offside. Shockingly, Celts headed down the tunnel with an XG of just 0.05 after registering just two shots. Celtic did show more energy after the restart but their lack of cutting edge was laid bare by the fact they ended the night with only two efforts on target. There was a complete lack of urgency, intensity and creativity. Idah hooked It looks like Rodgers is running out of patience with £9million striker Adam Idah. The Irishman barely touched the ball in an anonymous showing. As the second most expensive signing in the club's history, these are the nights when you expect the former Norwich star to come alive and repay the fee. But the out-of-sorts 24-year-old was sacrificed at the break as Rodgers made a much-needed tactical switch. South Korean winger Yang continues to blow hot and cold but he made an immediate difference after being thrown on for a crucial second-half. He occupied the left-hand flank as last year's 33-goal hitman, Maeda, was deployed through the middle to try and break down the stubborn Kairat defence. But it didn't work out. Sack the board The Green Brigade vented their fury at directors sitting in the comfy seats as the clock ticked down. Chants of 'sack the board' rang around Parkhead, with all corners of the stadium joining in. Chairman Peter Lawwell and chief exec Michael Nicholson were told in no uncertain terms where to go as supporters let rip at the club's moneymen for failing to back Rodgers in the transfer market - and gambling a place in the Champions League group stages. Fans have coughed up fortunes already this season on increased season ticket prices, endless merchandise and Celtic TV subscriptions. It's no wonder they're feeling short-changed with tens of millions gathering dust in the Bank of Parkhead. Golden boy There aren't too many household names in Kairat's squad. But all the talk beforehand was about Chelsea-bound wonderkid Dastan Satpaev. The golden boy of Almaty has agreed a deal that will see him move to Stamford Bridge when he turns 18 next August. And it's clear the most talked about youngster in Kazakhstan is destined to have a huge future in the game. He almost broke the deadlock early into the second-half with an audacious long-range lob that narrowly sailed over the bar - much to the relief of scrambling keeper Kasper Schmeichel. However, the 5ft 5in youngster was - quite literally - overshadowed by Brazilian powerhouse Edmilson. The former Celtic striker is a big unit and bulldozed Cameron Carter-Vickers and Liam Scales, causing huge problems in the air. He won the high ball before Kairat's offside finish and had the Hoops backline in knots at times. Rafael Urazbakhtin's men have already punched well above their weight by reaching this stage in the competition for the first time in their history. After stunning Slovan Bratislava in the last round, lightning struck twice in Glasgow. Celts have made hard work of it in the former Soviet republic in the past, and Rodgers' men will have to be at their best to rescue this tie in Almaty. The last time Callum McGregor and James Forrest were in Kazakhstan in 2019, Scotland were on the wrong end of a 3-0 spanking. They'll need a different outcome on Tuesday.
STV News
23 minutes ago
- STV News
Celtic held to goalless draw by stubborn Kairat in first leg of play-off
Celtic have been held to a goalless draw by a stubborn Kairat Almaty side at Parkhead in the first-leg of their Champions League play-off. The 0-0 result is a blow to the Hoops' chances of reaching the league phase of Europe's top competition with the tie now on a knife-edge ahead of their trip to Kazakhstan next week. Celtic dominated possession for most of the game, particularly in the second half, but failed to create many real chances in what was a disappointing night for the Scottish champions. A James Forrest effort early in the second half and Daizen Maeda's injury-time effort were their only shots on target in the game. Maeda also had a half-chance in the first half, and Liam Scales came close with a header, but other than that, it wasn't a vintage European night at Celtic Park, with the fans showing their displeasure throughout the game and after the final whistle with chants of 'sack the board'. The Hoops went into the game as heavy favourites, but if anyone inside Celtic Park thought the Kazakhstan champions were going to be an easy touch, then they were given an early wake-up call with the away side having the best of the early chances. The visitors looked dangerous in possession and even had the ball in the net after just ten minutes. The goal was ruled out for offside, but it showed that Kairat hadn't arrived in Glasgow just to make up the numbers and had league phase aspirations of their own. Brendan Rodgers' plans then suffered a blow when Alistair Johnston suffered an injury and had to be taken off on the half-hour mark. The Canada international right-back was replaced by Anthony Ralston. Celtic's first real chance fell to Maeda after he played a one-two with Benjamin Nygren and was put through inside the box, but the goalkeeper managed to clear the danger wide for a corner. Rodgers made another change at half-time when he replaced Adam Idah with Yang and moved Maeda through the middle. The South Korea winger was involved right away as Celtic nearly got themselves in front through James Forrest who forced a great save from Kairat goalkeeper Aleksandr Zarutskiy just 20 seconds after the restart. The Hoops looked a lot more lively in the early stages of the second half as they put pressure on the visitors' backline and pushed for the crucial opening goal. But as the game reached the last 25 minutes, it remained goalless, and the crowd started to get audibly frustrated, with chants of 'sack the board' circling the stadium on a couple of occasions. Liam Scales then came close with a header from an Arne Engels corner, but the ball flew just over the bar. It was now all Celtic as they dominated possession and looked for an opening as the Kairat team were falling deeper and deeper. But they failed to create any more real chances, until the fifth minute of injury time when Maeda raced through one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but his tame shot was well saved, and it ended 0-0. Celtic now face a daunting 7,000-mile trip to the Chinese border for the away leg next Tuesday. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
