Martin O’Neill led Celtic to their first Old Firm match in over 20 years, beating 10-man Rangers 3-1 in extra time to reach the Scottish League Cup final.
Goals from Johnny Kenny, Callum McGregor and Callum Osmund handed Danny Rohr their first derby defeat, but Thero Asgård was shown a red card in the first half and the team had to play over 80 minutes with one fewer player.
O’Neill returned to the club as caretaker manager on Monday following the surprise resignation of Brendan Rodgers and has won 17 of his 28 games against Rangers.
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Celtic interim manager Martin O’Neill is ‘delighted’ to be in charge of December’s final
The cup holders will return to the National Stadium on December 14th to face St Mirren in the final.
The story of this game will always be the story of two very different managers, but neither of them expected to be in the dugout when the draw was made.
O’Neal, who is more than twice his opponent’s age, got it right in the first period. Celtic were the defining characteristics of the great teams of his past: exciting, direct and relentless.
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Celtic defender Anthony Ralston talks about Rangers’ Cerro Asgaard’s red card challenge
The reigning champions thought they had taken the lead in the 19th minute when Nasser Dziga’s attempted clearance bounced comically off Nico Raskin and into their own goal. However, VAR spotted offside during the build-up and didn’t blush.
Celtic finally took the lead six minutes later when Johnny Kenny headed in at the front post from an Arne Engels corner kick.
Johnny Kenny celebrates the goal that helped us beat Rangers and book our place in the Scottish League Cup final.
With Celtic in good form, the chances of a comeback looked even slimmer when Cerro Asgaard was shown a straight red card in the 39th minute for stabbing Anthony Ralston in the thigh.
Sero Asgort is shown a red card and leaves the pitch.
Celtic were perhaps lucky not to be reduced to 10 men before half-time when Austin Trusty’s foot caught Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland’s head, but VAR did not intervene.
Celtic’s Auston Trusty booked for Jack Butland’s late appearance
Still, Rangers came back into the second period refreshed and reinvigorated by switching from a back five to a back four. Celtic, as expected, continued to dominate, albeit not with the same level of fluency.
In the end, Rangers captain James Tavanier equalized from the penalty spot with nine minutes remaining, paying the price for a series of missed chances.
James Tavanier celebrates Rangers’ equalizing goal
Rangers, led by Rolle, made a great effort to force the game into extra-time, but it only took three minutes for Celtic to take the lead again.
Captain McGregor moved from distance to aim for a batsman past Butland, and substitute Osmund slotted in Kieran Tierney’s cross to score his first senior goal in the 109th minute.
The year is 2025, and Celtic, led by Martin O’Neill, have defeated Rangers again.
O’Neill: I felt like 94 years old after that!
Celtic interim manager Martin O’Neill takes over as manager for the 28th time at his former club.
Celtic interim manager Martin O’Neill told Premier Sport:
“On Monday I was 73 years old, now I’m 94!
“First of all, I was happy to win the game. I thought we played great 11-on-11, but then we lost momentum. Rangers came into the game and had a good 10-on-11, but that’s when we really controlled the game for a while. But we missed some big chances in the game, and if we had taken them, maybe… we could have won.”
“Believe it or not, part of me was enjoying it! Sometimes, when I thought I had a little break, Kasper would pick it up and quickly dump it on someone who was completely exhausted. But anyway, it was a great effort, and I’m delighted.”
“I don’t take any credit for it. We’ve got some young players who probably don’t really know what it is, and we’ve got some back-to-back champions. That’s really important. The backroom staff have been great.”
On Osmund: “He’s very sharp. He’s really good. I didn’t know anything about him until Monday, but I thought he was great.
“As a centre-forward, sometimes you have to hold the ball instead of flicking it all the time. He wants to get some Henrik (Larsson) DVDs. He’s got plenty of confidence.”
As for whether he will manage the final, he said: “I don’t even know when the final will be. There will be a two-week break next weekend and I think the club will start looking to sign someone.”
As for whether he likes the job, he says, “Maybe I’ll ask you tomorrow. I don’t like it today.”
Osmand: Best day of my life
Callum Osmund celebrates after scoring Celtic’s third goal
Celtic goalscorer Callum Osmund spoke to Premier Sports about reaching his first final with the club.
“I feel amazing. There are no words to describe today. This is going to be the craziest day of my life.
“Unless we score against them in the final, nothing can beat that.
“Today is the best day of my life.”
On O’Neal’s influence: “From day one he talked to me and told me he thought so highly of me. The staff thinks so highly of me and that gives you the push you need.”
“Both managers have pushed me, but Martin has given me that confidence since he’s been here. He’s given me that confidence. That’s all you need from a manager. You only have one person who believes in you and has your back.”
“I hope this is just the beginning for me, but obviously I have to keep building and moving forward.”
Gers manager Rohr says he likes the spirit of his 10-a-side team
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Rangers head coach Danny Rolle remains positive despite defeat to Celtic
Rangers head coach Danny Rohr told Premier Sports:
“Obviously I’m disappointed with today’s loss. I have to say what I liked was the spirit after the red card. The team really fought until the end, put in a lot of effort and had some good chances to score the equalizer again.”
“We have a lot of work to do on defense. We couldn’t get the win today, which is disappointing for us, but I want to capture the spirit of the group.”
“We made the changes at half-time. We brought in more attacking players and played 4-3-2 because we wanted to put pressure on the ball with two guys in front of us. With these defensive players and the high line, it was for me that we were able to take chances.”
“We had some good moments in this direction in the second half, and in extra time there was a lot of running. And that was what they did well. They kept the ball a little bit more in the area and had some tough moments at times.”
As for Asgort’s red: “I have to look back. I think it’s the referee’s decision. That’s not for me to argue. If it’s a red card, it’s a red card. I don’t know yet.
“When you play a game like this again with 10 men for 60 minutes and then go into overtime, that’s a long time. We fought back hard to come back, got a deserved equaliser, and they won 3-1.”
On character: “I think it’s a team that’s really motivated, has a great spirit and gives everything. We’ve made a lot of progress since the last away game in Bergen (Bran). There are no question marks.
“The players did everything I asked of them, which I think is good. This is the basics we have to do and I’m very confident that if we keep going in this direction, we’ll get a lot of results our way.”
