Match Pictures | Matches: 2024 – 2025
Trivia
- KO: 11:00am UK time, 12pm Local time Saturday; Celtic TV
- Friendly away in Portugal (one of two games in Portugal), behind closed doors, so no crowds.
- Played at Benfica Academy.
- Tierney returns for his first Celtic appearance.
- Macro Tilio with a very rare start at Celtic.
- Scott Allan, ex-Celt, joined SPFL newcomers East Kilbride’s coaching staff.
- Ex-Celt Massimo Donati named as new manager of Italian club Sampdoria.
- Reports:
- Rapid Vienna expect forward and Celtic target Isak Jansson, 23, to leave this summer and the Swede has been ordered to sit out pre-season training.
- Kawasaki Frontale striker Shin Yamada has agreed a £1.5m transfer to Celtic and the 25-year-old will arrive in Scotland after Japan face South Korea on 15 July. (Sports Hochi).
- Johnny Kenny keen to sign a new Celtic deal, but the 22-year-old striker, for whom an offer from Bolton was rejected, is also happy to then head out on loan.
- Interest in 28-year-old England striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who has left Everton as a free agent.
- Interested in 21-year-old left-back Flávio Nazinho, who joined Club Brugge a year ago for £870,000, plus a similar amount in bonuses, from Sporting Lisbon, with the Portuguese club due 15% of any profit.
- Kwon to Austria Vienna.
- Transfers in: Kieran Tierney (free from Arsenal, 27 May 2025); Ross Doohan, has signed for the club on a three-year deal. Isaac English from Morton; Benjamin Nygren undisclosed fee from Nordsjaelland (est €1.5/£1.3m); Callum Osmand development fee from Fulham; Hayato Inamura from Albirex Niigata fee £~250k;
- Transfers out: Scott Bain released on a free, moved to Falkirk; Daniel Cummings (£300k, pre-contract signed last Jan with West Ham); Joey Dawson (free to Scunthorpe); Matt Anderson to KV Kortrijk (Belgium, Free); Maik Nawrocki year loan deal to German side Hannover 96 with purchase clause; Lagerbielke to Braga (est up to £2.7m with 10% sell on clause);
- TV: Much-loved children’s TV presenter Glen Michael passed away at the age of 99. RIP
- Scottish football has extended its contract with Premier Sports until 2030.
Summary
Manager Brendan Rodgers says it’s “clear that we need to improve our frontline”.
Says it all really on this & last game.
MC of KDS:
First half, Donovan is definitely better than (Murray, Welsh) & Ralston at fullback though not centrally the handball was a lesson in non-thinking. McPherson loses his player on the corner, he looks clumsy. He has not improved since last summer. Donovan comes out to the right as Johnston understudy. Need to see more of Tilio. Osmand so far is not a footballer, he is a track star.
We all know now for sure Murray, Scales and Ralston are not good with positional sense, touch, skillset, pace and on and on. 2nd half, game changed when he removed McGregor. Mc Ardle played like Lennon at the end of his career. Nygren apart from his cross to Idah was quiet. Arne started well and McGregor’s absence impacted his game. Inamura was good enough; however, I see Rodgers has introduced him to inversion. And that tactic basically closed him down. So why does Rodgers not bin that tactic and tell him to come out wide where he is much more effective? I would also give Inamura a chance at CB but only if he plays with CCV, Trusty was good enough and way better than Scales, Idah scored but for me we need a better option.
Ronan CFC of KDS:
Poor.
Positives:
Hatate and Maeda look ready to go. Sharp.
Great to see KT back.
Nyrgren slotted in well as expected. Just a comfortable footballer.
No injuries.
Negatives:
B team boys were really poor. Miles off it technically and athletically.
Osmand couple good runs but his touch was bad. Kenny easily looks ahead of him so far.
Trusty poor again. Just a guy you’ll never have any confidence in.
Engels struggling to make any impact on these games at all.
Think it’s very harsh to lay much of the blame for the 3rd at Dane Murray. He stands out because he was the only Celtic player in any half decent position to be able to put pressure on the ball. We had 5 Celtic players attracted to a ball that was in the air in their box, none of them got it, and they all left the guy outside the box who collected it and could turn. Inamura was in Narnia as he left the defence with a man-disadvantage to go mark their RB. Scales and Murray could’ve done better for sure but if they’re in a 2v4 something has gone badly, badly wrong.
Teams
Celtic
Sinisalo, Donovan, McPherson, Trusty, Tierney, McGregor (c), McCowan, Hatate, Tilio, Maeda, Osmand
Subs: Doohan, Clarke, Rice, Scales, Nygren, Idah, Yang, Kenny, Inamura, Engels, Summers, Montgomery, Ure, Murray, Forrest, McArdle, Ralston, Isiguzo
Goals:Hatate 7, Idah 53
Assists:
Estrela da Amadora
Renan; Sidny, Otávio, Miguel Lopes, Gabriel Rodrigues , Montoia , Amine, Paulo, Marcus Abraham, Fábio Ronaldo e Alan Godoy.
Goals:Godoy 37 (pen), Otávio 44, Cabral 65
Stadium: Benfica Academy
Ref:
Att: Behind closed doors
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Match Links
Articles
Celtic suffer first pre-season defeat against Estrela
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2025/july/12/celtic-suffer-first-pre-season-defeat-against-estrela/
First Team
By Matthew Campbell in Portugal
Share
12 Jul 2025, 1:06 pm
Pre-season Friendly
Saturday, July 12, 2025
Estádio Benfica Campus
ESTRELA DA AMADORA…3
(Godoy 37, Otávio 44, Cabral 65)
CELTIC…2
(Hatate 7, Idah 53)
Celtic were defeated 3-2 by Portuguese side Estrela da Amadora at the Benfica training campus today (Saturday, July 12), in a match that was played at an intense pace from the first whistle.
The Celts showed from the start that they were eager to get on the front foot, and within moments of the game starting, Reo Hatate almost diverted the ball in to the net after shutting down the opposition keeper, but the midfielder was unfortunate that the break of the ball carried it away from goal.
Kieran Tierney, making his first appearance in the hoops since rejoining the club this summer, looked well suited to Brendan Rodgers’ side, with his excellent passing from the back, which helped to get the Celts on the attack.
It wasn’t long before Celtic had the lead, and the opener came in the seventh minute after Luke McCowan was alert to a loose ball out of the Estrela defence which he picked up and sent out wide to Marco Tilio.
The Australian fired a ball across the box which reached Reo Hatate, who was in space 12 yards from goal and he was composed as he slotted it beyond the keeper to make it 1-0.
Callum McGregor’s highlights reel from last season was full of spectacular goals from the edge of the box, and with 20 minutes gone in this morning’s match, he almost struck from distance again after receiving the ball from Tilio, but his shot crept just wide of the post.
The Celts kept Estrela under the cosh for most of the first half, with the Portuguese side limited to very little chances, but in the 37th minute, a penalty awarded against Colby Donovan for a handball provided a chance for Alan Godoy to equalise from 12 yards out.
The Spanish forward blasted his spot kick straight down the middle to make it 1-1 and draw his side back in to the game.
With just seconds of the first half left, Estrela took the lead from a corner. A ball whipped in from the right hand side found centre half found the Brazilian, Otávio, and the centre half powered his header beyond Sinisalo to give his side a 2-1 lead at the break.
Teams out
Brendan Rodgers made a raft of changes for the second half, with only Callum McGregor remaining on the pitch from the first half team, whilst Benjamin Nygren made his first appearance in the Hoops.
The second half also saw Doohan, Ralston, Murray, Scales, Inamura, Engels, Forrest, Yang and Idah all introduced to the match.
Celtic found the equaliser in the 53rd minute after some brilliant passing and movement which saw the Celts move the ball from left to right.
Forrest slipped the ball through to Nygren who flashed a pass across the face of goal, leaving Adam Idah with the perfect opportunity to score from a few yards out, an opportunity which he duly took.
The Irish forward almost grabbed a second just before the hour mark when the Celts broke forward at pace thanks to a great ball to Forrest from Engels. The winger sent Idah through in to the box with the ball, but the keeper made a good stop to keep the game level.
After a solid performance for 60 minutes, Callum McGregor was replaced by Sean McArdle, with James Forrest taking the captain’s armband for the remainder of the match.
Estrela took the lead again with 25 minutes to go when a forward ball split the Celtic defence and left Liam Scales with a three on one.
The ball was shifted out to the left where Jovane Cabral was able to have a shot on goal. Doohan got a touch on the ball but was unable to keep it out of the net, and it was 3-2 to the Portuguese side.
Celtic continued to work hard and search for the equaliser but were unable to carve out any big opportunities in the closing stages of the match.
Next up in the Celts’ pre-season fixture schedule is a match against Sporting Lisbon at the Estádio do Algarve on Wednesday (July 16, KO: 19.30).
CELTIC: Sinisalo, Donovan, McPherson, Trusty, Tierney, McGregor (c), McCowan, Hatate, Tilio, Maeda, Osmand
Subs: Doohan, Clarke, Rice, Scales, Nygren, Idah, Yang, Kenny, Inamura, Engels, Summers, Montgomery, Ure, Murray, Forrest, McArdle, Ralston, Isiguzo