In a commanding performance, Celtic dispatched Hibernian 2-0 with goals from Nicolas Kuhn and Callum McGregor in the Scottish Premiership. McGregor, who recently opted out of international football, showcased his brilliance with a stunning goal from a distance of approximately 30 yards.
The game took place on Hibernian’s home turf, Easter Road, with David Gray in his maiden home league match as head coach. However, his side grappled with creating opportunities against Celtic’s goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel until the game neared its conclusion.
An early goal was credited to Nicolas Kuhn, putting Celtic in a position of control that they never ceded. Gray swapped in Dylan Levitt and new addition Mykola Kuharevich following a 3-0 defeat at the hands of St Mirren, but this didn’t seem to alter the outcome. In contrast, Celtic largely retained their winning formula from their 4-0 defeat over Kilmarnock.
Celtic’s opening goal was the result of a fast-paced move on a Hibernian’s throw deep in Celtic’s territory. Greg Taylor’s clearance reached Kuhn, who quickly sent the ball over the top. The Hibernian defence couldn’t keep up with the rapidity of Kyogo Furuhashi, who rather than passing to Kuhn, decided to take the shot. His attempt was deflected by Josef Bursik directly to James Forrest, who set up Kuhn for an easy finish.
With signs of last season’s championship form and the advantage of an invigorated Kuhn, Celtic largely dominated the game. Hibernian, however, didn’t do themselves any favours with a series of misplaced passes in their half, which eventually allowed McGregor to score his striking goal in the 19th minute.
The situation seemed to be spiralling out of control for the home team. Local defender Warren O’Hora unintentionally almost scored an own goal, hitting Johnston’s cross off the underside of his goal post while Matt O’Riley’s attempted to score from 20 yards out was a bit too high.
Celtic dominated the game, intensifying their attempts to increase their advantage early in the second half. A shot from McGregor bounced off the goal post, and both Kuhn and O’Riley posed threats prior to a brilliant pass from Taylor enabling Furuhashi to make an attempt on goal, which was ultimately saved by Bursik.
Signs of a comeback from Hibs were marked by goal-attempts from Martin Boyle and Lewis Miller. Gray then introduced Kieron Bowie to the match. Around the 70th minute, Rudi Molotnikov attempted the home team’s first shot, but his effort went wide after sidestepping two opponents.
Furuhashi missed the chance to capitalise on a potent counter-attack and had to go off twice due to injuries. He managed to shake them off, but in the absence of an experienced backup, Mikey Johnston stepped in as central striker to allow the Japanese forward to rest. His attempt from 20 yards just fell wide of the goal.
Bowie’s performance offered the Hibs faithful a glimmer of hope when his shot from a difficult angle skimmed the bar. Late substitutions saw Daizen Maeda come into the game after Johnston took a blow to the face from Bursik while following up on a saved header by O’Riley.