2016-07-12: Lincoln Red Imps 1–0 Celtic, European Cup

Trivia

• Champions League 2016-17 – Qualifying – First Round First leg
  
• Brenan Rodgers first competitive game as Celtic manager, and an ignominious defeat to begin with.
• Result wil go down as one of our most embarrassing defeats ever, but we have a second leg to make amends.
  
• Lincoln Red Imps are from Gibraltar, and this match comes a few weeks after the UK voted for Brexit from the EU! Gibralter, NI, Scotland & London are the only main regions to have voted to stay, but vastly outvoted.
  
• “Asked guy who booked me taxi at stadium if he’s going to @celticfc game tmw.” “Yes, I’m a @LincolnRedImps player!” pic.twitter.com/VkC8PU1H9P “ – Ronnie Esplin (Journo).
  
• Logan Bailly suffered a suspected broken ankle, ruling him out of Tuesday’s Champions League clash against Lincoln Red Imps.
  
• Johansen has been ruled out for three weeks, amid reports a fee has been agreed with Turkish giants Galatasaray
  
• Could miss out on Shane Duffy, with Swansea the favourites to sign the Irish defender.
  
• Stuart Findlay, has joined Newcastle on a free transfer after leaving Celtic at the end of the 2015-16 season. The youngster signed with them to play in the Championship next season after getting relegated from the Premier League. The
• Scotland Under-21 international defender played on loan for Scottish side Kilmarnock last season. He never played for the Celtic first team. Will Celtic regret this in the same way Newcastle regretted losing Forster to Celtic?
• Euros: France v Portugal in the final, Portugal win 1-0 in ET, in what has been described as a mostly dull tournament lit up by some of the smaller sparks like Iceland & Wales.
• Tennis: Scotland’s Andy Murray wins Wimbledon for a second time, his third major. Much respect to him, and a double after Hibs won the Scottish Cup a month back (he’s a Hibbee).
  
• Tennis: Scotland’s Gordon Reid has won the Wimbledon men’s wheelchair singles title – making history as the first ever British man to win the title. So double for Scotland.
  
• East Londonderry MP Gregory Campbell offends all, he said: “Someone told me that Celtic are due to play on the 12th, in Gibraltar. That info was ok but wasn’t sure what he meant when he hoped that it wouldn’t be like the last time Irish Republican sympathisers went to Gibraltar and lost.” (a reference to SAS shootings of Mairead Farrell, Sean Savage and Daniel McCann in 1988).
• UK has a new prime minister, Theresa May.

Review

(Desert Oasis of KDS)
It is a shocking result and will not be forgotten. If (can’t believe I typed that, and actually mean it) we get through this is not a team to face better opponents.

This is the real test for Rodgers now. He probably hoped as many of us did, that the team was better than the last 6 months showed, and that he could add 2 or 3 quality signings and build slowly. Well that is gone. Of the 14 on the pitch last night, probably only 5 or 6 are worth saving. I would keep Gordon (but a challenger should be looked at), Erik, KT, Griffiths and Dembele. Armstrong looked better so might be worth a run. The rest have to go and start with the captain, that would be the managers big statement.

I know we will not get 6 new players in the next week, but 1 or 2 should come in, and the rest rotated. I am not a huge fan of McGregor but he seemed tidy and had energy at the end of last season. Roberts should play when fit. Anyone, and I do mean anyone, to replace Efe. Janko looks awful, another failed punt.

The worst part for me was that when the goal went in I actually just wanted it to not get worse. Other than the last manager I always had faith in Celtic to come back. This team has no character, no determination, no heart. We are in trouble if the changes are not drastic

(El Salto)
A total fecking embarrassment from the teams performance to the managers picking of certain players who are just taking the piss now with the depths they are sinking to.

Bitton, Brown, Ambrose etc, I`m looking at you

Worst result in our history, and yes, we all know we will turn it around, but that shambles of a result will always be on the record books.

I watched the game on a stream from Gibraltarian Television and even they were stunned as to how bad we were, tempering their obvious joy with a feeling that surely Celtic would turn the one goal deficit around on the night. They seemed totally shocked at the end.

We should be embarrassed.

Teams

Lincoln Red Imps FC

Substitutes

• 4Bardon
• 11Cabrera
• 13Soler Ortuño
• 16Rojas
• 17Clinton
• 18Chipolina
• 86Amaro Livramento

Goals

• Lee Casciaro 47

Celtic

Substitutes

• 7 Ciftci
• 14 Armstrong
• 23 Lustig
• 27 Roberts
• 38 Fasan
• 42 McGregor
• 49 Forrest

Articles

• Match Report (see end of page below)

Pictures

• Match Pictures

Forum

• Pre-match http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/9301720/
• Match http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/9303205/
• Post Match http://kerrydalestreet.co.uk/topic/9303228/

MOTM

• Voting Thread
• Result Thread
• Winner –

Articles

BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/36761213#tab-1
Lincoln Red Imps beat Estonians Flora Tallin 2-1 on aggregate in the first qualifying round

Celtic suffered arguably the worst defeat in their history when they were humbled by Gibraltarian part-timers Lincoln Red Imps in the Champions League second qualifying round.

Lee Casciaro’s second-half goal did the damage, the Ministry of Defence police officer outfoxing Efe Ambrose to score.

Leigh Griffiths twice hit the bar, but Celtic could not salvage anything from Brendan Rodgers’ first game in charge.
The second leg is at Celtic Park next Wednesday.

And while the Scottish champions remain favourites to progress to the third qualifying round, serious improvement will be needed.

◾‘One Red Imps player was driving a taxi until a few hours before the game’

The result was no more than Lincoln Red Imps deserved, a team containing a fireman, a policeman and a taxi driver having more than matched their illustrious opponents after completing shifts at their day jobs.

European performance will be the yardstick by which Rodgers is judged, with Champions League defeats against Malmo, Maribor and Legia Warsaw casting a shadow over predecessor Ronny Deila’s two years in charge.

Rodgers spoke pre-match of his pride in taking charge of the former European champions for the first time but the reality is that this will rank as the most embarrassing result of his career to date.

A goalless first half perhaps gave some indication of the task facing Celtic.

The visitors dominated possession from the start but struggled to find their rhythm, on a less-than-ideal artificial surface and in the face of a tigerish Red Imps side who defended well, impishly swarming around Griffiths and Moussa Dembele at every turn.

The hosts had the first chance when Liam Walker forced a routine save from goalkeeper Craig Gordon after some tidy approach play, while moments later Celtic had a goal disallowed after Dembele jumped with goalkeeper Raul Navas to contest a Scott Brown free kick.

‘Biggest shock in the history of European football’

Lee Casciaro (right) gave Lincoln Red Imps a shock lead in the second half

Lee Casciaro puts the ball past Craig Gordon to give Lincoln Red Imps a famous win

Celtic needed to up the ante in the second half but it was the Red Imps who struck.

Casciaro – who scored Gibraltar’s first competitive goal, against Scotland at Hampden in March 2015 – got on the end of a long ball, turned Ambrose and prodded in.

Just two minutes later, a shell-shocked Celtic had a let off when Antonio Calderon scampered away from a quick free-kick but fired inches over Gordon’s crossbar.

With Celtic facing what Imps captain and customs officer Roy Chipolina said would be the biggest shock in European football history, Griffiths smashed a shot off the crossbar.

Rodgers, who had earlier introduced James Forrest and Stuart Armstrong, went to the well for the final time and introduced Nadir Ciftci for the ineffective Dembele but the Turk found the lack of service just as frustrating.

Griffiths rattled the crossbar once more from a free kick, and Nir Bitton was denied a tap-in on the rebound by a superb Ryan Casciaro tackle.

Navas then denied Ciftci from a header, palming the ball away, but lacklustre Celtic were left humbled and humiliated by the effervescent underdogs.

Lincoln Red Imps 1 – 0 Celtic: Stunning upset in Rodgers’ first match

The Scotsman

Published: 20:50 Tuesday 12 July 2016

Brendan Rodgers’ first game as Celtic boss ended in humiliation as his Hoops side were humbled 1-0 by Lincoln Red Imps in in the first leg of their second Champions League qualifier at the Victoria stadium.

The Parkhead side laboured in the searing heat of the goalless first 45 minutes and were then stunned when Lee Casciaro, who had scored Gibraltar’s first international goal against Scotland at Hampden in 2015, sensationally put the part-timers ahead in the 47th minute.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has lost his first game in charge. Picture: SNS
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has lost his first game in charge. Picture: SNS

Hoops striker Leigh Griffiths hit the woodwork twice as the Scottish champions battled for their dignity, but, buoyed by their stunning breakthrough, the home side held out for a result which ranks as the most embarrassing in Celtic’s European history.

The return game at Celtic Park next week should still be a formality, but Rodgers’ tenure has begun in the worst possible way.

It had promised to be a stroll for the Glasgow club.

There were around 300 Celtic supporters in the away end – some more interspersed with the home fans in the crowd of less than 2,000 – to see French striker Moussa Dembele make his competitive debut on his 20th birthday.

Attacking midfielder Ryan Christie was making his European debut, with last season’s top scorer Griffiths shunted wide on the right.

Swedish referee Andreas Ekberg punctuated the opening stages with his whistle, mainly for fouls against Celtic, although Hoops defender Efe Ambrose picked up a booking in the 10th minute for a foul on the night’s hero, Casciaro.

The Scottish champions, wearing their black and gold kit, huffed and puffed.

A couple of crosses from Griffiths failed to find a team-mate before Hoops goalkeeper Craig Gordon was forced to make a decent save from Liam Walker’s low 20-yard effort as the home side slowly began to edge forward.

In the 31st minute Dembele, who had a quite start to the match, headed in skipper Scott Brown’s free-kick, but was adjudged to have fouled keeper Raul Navas on the line.

Five minutes from the break Nava pushed a powerful drive from Dembele past the post for a corner which came to nothing before the Celtic striker fired an angled-drive wide of the far post.

The match exploded into life two minutes after the restart, following a Navas save from Griffiths.

Casciaro took advantage of Ambrose’s hesitation when chasing a long Walker pass to stab the ball past Gordon from 12 yards to widespread disbelief.

Moments later, as Celtic reeled in a state of shock, Lincoln midfielder Antonio Calderon fired just over the bar from 14 yards.

Rodgers brought on James Forrest and Stuart Armstrong for Christie and Tom Rogic before Griffiths’ shot from 10 yards was deflected on to the bar by Carlos Garcia before Lincoln captain Roy Chipolina completed the clearance for a fruitless corner.

As Celtic’s desperation grew, Armstrong blasted over the bar to groans from the increasingly worried Hoops supporters.

In the 72nd minute Nadir Ciftci replaced Dembele in what was Rodgers’ last throw of the dice, as scorer Casciaro came off to a hero’s reception to be replaced by George Cabrera.

Five minutes later, after Griffiths was fouled by Imps defender Joe Chipolina 25 yards from goal, the former Wolves striker cracked the bar with the free-kick, with Nir Bitton beaten to the rebound.

As Celtic stepped up the pressure in the final 10 minutes Navas saved from Ciftci, who subsequently missed the target with a header before the final whistle, after four added minutes, confirmed the Hoops’ embarrassment as the Lincoln players and supporters celebrated with justifiable pride.