The final match of the Scottish Cup resulted in a 1-0 victory for Celtic over Rangers, thanks to a last-gasp goal from Adam Idah, the Republic of Ireland international. The 150th anniversary final was held at Hampden Park. The first half of the game remained without goals, with Cyriel Dessers of Rangers missing a few opportunities. His replacement, Abdallah Sima, however, made a goal in the 59th minute, which was disallowed by referee Nick Walsh due to a foul on Celtic goalkeeper, Joe Hart.
Although the Rangers, fondly known as The Light Blues, brought vibrancy and promise to the game with their quick replacements, the monumental moment came when their goalie Jack Butland couldn’t manage a far-off strike, offering an opportunity for Idah, the loanee from Norwich, to score the winning goal.
Celtic secured their latest Scottish Premiership title the previous week in part due to a 10-point gain in their 12 matches against rival team Rangers. Despite this being the first time in 90 minutes that Rangers appeared the stronger team, Celtic used their traditional resilience to win, thus bolstering Brendan Rodgers’ impressive record against the Rangers to just one loss in 18 Old Firm Games. This leaves Celtic’s manager Rodgers contemplating the club’s future plans for the upcoming season.
During the preparations for the grand season final, Rodgers stated his team was in top form and fully prepared, in stark contrast to Philippe Clement, the Rangers manager, who was contending with multiple injury concerns and dubious player availability. However, Rangers supporters were heartened to welcome back defenders Leon Balogun and Ridvan Yilmaz, whilst John Lundstram was returning from a suspension, but only as a reserve.
The final game proved an energetic spectacle, further enhanced by the reinstated equal split in supporter presence. The opening was appropriately lively, with multiple chances missed, whilst Celtic’s Reo Hatate saw his shot thwarted by Rangers’ Ben Davies. The final miss by Dessers furthered disappointment for the Rangers’ fans.
The contest kept its high-tempo rhythm throughout. Kyogo Furuhashi, the Celtic striker, made a diving header in the Rangers’ penalty box which seemed to touch the hands of Davies. But, in spite of the appeals for a penalty, both the referee Walsh as well as VAR chose to ignore the incident.
Around the 25th-minute mark, Desserts was provided another opportunity by Cantwell, but his attempt was deflected by one of the trio of Celtic defenders retreating, resulting in another corner which yielded no results. Referee Walsh also dismissed calls for a penalty when Dujon Sterling was tackled by Liam Scales in the boundary of the box – although it did appear that the Rangers player could have been just out of the box.
Sima subbed in for Dessers at the commencement of the latter half, quickly making his mark by guiding a corner from James Tavernier into the net from the far post. However, following a VAR review, the goal was rescinded due to a foul by Nico Raskin on Hart.
Furuhashi was soon followed to the bench by Idah and James Forrest, who made way for Nicolas Kuhn. Rabbi Matondo and Scott Wright took the place of Silva and Cantwell for the final 20 minutes, increasing the pace further when Ross McCausland replaced Sterling. The increased tempo started to unsettle Celtic.
Sima wrapped up a fast play by aiming a shot at Hart, who was partaking in his final match before retirement.
The culmination of the game was a rollercoaster of tension and then Celtic success. A midfield possession loss by Wright saw the Celtic side surge forward with a long-range attempt from Paulo Bernardo. Butland was unable to secure the save and Idah promptly pounced on the loose ball to strike it into the goal, dealing a decisive blow to the squad from Govan. Despite an additional eight minutes, the Rangers could not stage a comeback.