Match Pictures | Matches: 2025 – 2026
Trivia
- KO: 17:30, Sunday
- Scottish Cup 4th round
- Venue The BBSP Stadium Rugby Park [match played at Kilmarnock’s Rugby Park]
- Livingston manager David Martindale has thanked Celtic for allowing the West Lothian club to terminate Adam Montgomery’s loan after the 23-year-old left-back suffered another injury setback.
- Former Celtic midfielder Nir Bitton is poised to become player-manager of Israeli club Ashdod.
- Reports:
- Celtic are exploring a possible deal for NK Celje forward Franko Kovacevic, who has scored 25 goals in 28 games this season – including 14 in the Europa League and Conference League.
- Chelsea and David Datro Fofana are working on a permanent exit this window, with Celtic expressing interest in the 23-year-old forward who is currently on loan at Turkish Super Lig club Fatih Karagumruk.
- Basel have reduced their asking price for Philip Otele and will consider offers in excess of £6m.
- Hibernian are expecting offers for striker Kieron Bowie.
- Celtic have made an enquiry for West Ham United striker Callum Wilson, but a number of clubs in England and Saudi Arabia are also interested in the 33-year-old.
- Martin O’Neill has no plans to allow Yang Hyun-jun to leave during January amid the 23-year-old winger’s improved form following renewed interest from Birmingham City last month.
- Chelsea are set to recall Celtic target David Datro Fofana from his loan spell with Turkish club Fatih Karagumruk as they look to sell the 23-year-old Ivory Coast striker this month.
- Franko Kovacevic will not be joining Celtic, with the 26-year-old Croat striker having agreed personal terms after a £2.6m transfer was agreed between Slovenian club Celje and Ferencvaros
- West Ham United manager Nuno Espirito Santo remained coy when asked about the future of Celtic-linked striker Callum Wilson despite the 33-year-old scoring a stoppage-time winner for the relegation-threatened side against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.
- Hoffenheim are in advanced talks to sign Shamrock Rovers striker Michael Noonan, but Celtic are also in the race after presenting a bid for the 17-year-old.
- Hacken will demand about £6.65m for 21-year-old Silas Andersen, with Celtic among up to five clubs preparing bids for the Denmark Under-21 midfielder.
- Celtic have agreed to sell 20-year-old centre-back Mitchell Robertson, who is currently on loan to Inverness Caledonian Thistle, to Livingston.
- Celtic, Crystal Palace, Brighton & Hove Albion and Norwich City have registered their interest in signing 17-year-old Dundalk centre-half Vinnie Leonard.
-
Transfers – January transfer window:
-
- In:
- Julian Araujo – On loan – 6mth
- Stephen Welsh recalled from Motherwell loan.
- Out:
- Hayato Inamura – Loan to FC Tokyo until the end of the 2025/26 season.
- Jahmai Simpson-Pusey loan cancelled early
Summary
‘I’m not so sure I learned much’
“Unconvincing in the sense that, while the most important thing was winning, it took a long time for us to put the game to bed. “We made 10 changes. A couple of lads who played tonight did not feature for me at all in the first spell. [Michel-Ange] Balikwisha, Paulo [Bernardo]. It was matter of trying to see what they could do. We had loads of possession, but we were unable to break them down. “We’ve a fair idea of what we need to do [in the window] and I want to get on with it. “Tonight, it would have been nice to put on a great performance. I was very concerned about the game – but that’s how I’ve spent the last 30 years. We should have played much better. I’m not so sure I learned much more than I knew before.”
– O’Neill knows what Celtic need after cup win
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill told BBC Sportsound: “We can play much better. Obviously I made a lot of changes to the team but I’m still concerned about the match. “It was nice to win but we can play much better, though that’s down to me making so many changes. “Some players I wanted to see but in the same token still wanting to keep some continuity, which is very difficult given the changes we did. “It was a bit of a toil [to get a second goal], and we lacked a spark. Seb [Tounekti] came on and gave us a bit of something, and scored a great goal. I would like that second goal to have been a lot earlier. “We had lots of possession and even when we did create chances we were a bit wasteful as well.”~
“Winning builds momentum more than anything else. Tonight, I wasn’t wildly surprised about the way the game went. After half an hour, we’re thinking we’re having to break this team down. We’re starting to think about plan B. “Seb [Tounekti] came on and showed that little bit of quality, and that’s what you need. I wish it had happened 15 minutes earlier, but he has that ability to do that. It was a lovely goal and it settled the game. “It is a huge week and this is the first part of it. We didn’t play with phenomenal panache, but we won the game and we’ll move in.”
Auchinleck Talbot boss Tommy Sloan tells BBC Sportsound: “It was a fantastic effort from the lads. I’m not surprised they came up with it because they normally do. “We had been going well this season up until the last few weeks and they’ve certainly proved today that they’re capable of digging in and putting on a performance. “We would have liked to have threatened the goal a bit more but the effort’s been fantastic and that is for another day. “I was delighted going in 1-0 down at half-time and would have taken that before the game so it was a positive team talk. I tried to say that to them. “We stayed in the game for long periods, didn’t threaten the goal enough but that was the only disappointing thing for me.”
Joebloggscity of TheCelticWiki:
Auchinlech’s side maybe amateur and umpteen number of leagues below Celtic, but they didn’t half hold their today, and Celtic toiled through much of the much. If anyone believed that the troubles were over with Martin O’Neill back in charge will sadly be having a reality check after this performance. There’s just too much wrong with the squad, and once again Johnny Kenny is not good enough but neither is the service into him from his colleagues. Granted it was a mostly reserve side but that shouldn’t have been any excuse today. Only positive to come from the match (apart from the result!) was a fine goal from Tounekti, which is a big confidence booster he needed.
Toruquemeda of KDS:
Beyond dreadful. The club has a malignant cancer at its heart. Without question, the poorest, most disaffected squad I have seen in my lifetime. This will take four or five windows to fix – and that is even if the will is there, which we can’t be sure of. One little bit of family joy, if you don’t mind me sharing: my grand-nephew, who is Celtic daft and was on the bench for Talbot tonight, got on the field with a few minutes to go. The whole family was desperate to see him and WhatsApp melted when we saw him come on. To see him shaking hands with Celtic players at the end of the game would have warmed my late brother’s heart! Having said that, I told the little bugger he was out the will if his team won!
jbj712 of KDS: As poor a performance as Motherwell away.
We pay these guys thousands of pounds per week and then watch them out run, out fought and out thought by guys who are part timers playing for a relative pittance.
A club with real ambition and standards would bin practically all of them from the coward in goals to the imposter that is Balishwika. Whoever was involved in his signing should be investigated for fraud.
Jimmy_mac of KDS:
O’Neil’s comments post game said it all, he didn’t learn anything new. He knows that the squad isn’t good enough and there are too many players who are neat and tidy on the ball but don’t offer anything. I think one or two better quality but different style of player would bring out the best in some of them but the squad in general is not good enough. Any team that sits back and defends is going to be difficult to break down with this group of players. We have no midfielder willing to get forward and beyond his man. They all like playing football outside the 18 yard box. This made it so easy to defend against last night as Kenny was isolated. I was surprised MON kept the opposite wingers on for the first half and didn’t swap them sooner. But further confirmation that we need wide men. And despite his finish and chopped off goal, Kenny doesn’t like is or unable to play against a team who defend so deep. All too easily marshalled.
‘The biggest weeist club in Scotland’published at 16:54 GMT 18 January
Auchinleck Talbot v Celtic (17:30)
For Talbot programme writer Jim McAuley: “It will be the greatest day in the club’s history to play a world-renowned team like Celtic. It will be up there with when The Who played here in Auchinleck Community Centre. David and Goliath.”
McAuley knows all about that, being club historian, chronicling more than 100 trophies since their establishment in 1909.
Those include 14 Scottish Junior Cups – eight of them this century – for a club who sit second in the West of Scotland League Premier Division, two points behind Troon but with two games in hand, after entering the senior pyramid.
“I would say we are the biggest weeist club in Scotland,” he says, adding that he is “absolutely devastated” that the tie has been moved.
“Down here, I think we would have had that wee chance, but at Rugby Park, I think they’ll be too much for us. In the days after, Celtic go to Bologna. We go to Pollok in the west of Glasgow.”
Despite that, McAuley admits “stranger things have happened” in football, recalling that Talbot beat Celtic 3-2 in their only previous meeting – a testimonial in 1992, albeit with visitors sending a youth side.
Teams
Celtic
Manager Martin O’Neill
Formation 4 – 3 – 3
12, V. Sinisalo
51, C. Donovan
57, S. Welsh, subbed for L. Scales at 68mins
47, D. Murray
56, A. Ralston
10, M. Balikwisha, subbed for B. Nygren at 68mins
42, C. McGregor (c), Captain, subbed for R. Hatate at 88mins
28, Paulo Bernardo
49, J. Forrest, subbed for S. Tounekti at 63mins
24, J. Kenny, subbed for S. Yamada at 87mins
14, L. McCowan
away team,Celtic
89, J. Haney
41, R. Hatate
38, D. Maeda
08, B. Nygren
05, L. Scales
01, K. Schmeichel
23, S. Tounekti
18, S. Yamada
13, Yang Hyun-Jun
Subs:
…
Goals:
J. Kenny (34′)
S. Tounekti (87′)
Assists:
Paulo Bernardo (87′)
Auchinkleck Talbot
01, W. Muir
03, S. Schoneville, subbed for A. Kerr at 80mins
05, A. Wilson
23, N. McPherson (c), Captain
14, R. Clark
21, C. Crooks, subbed for K. Wood at 88mins
08, A. Sime
11, L. Gillies
24, K. McAvoy, subbed for A. Nimmo at 83mins
09, C. Boyd
12, L. Main, subbed for L. Kazoka at 88mins
Substitutes
home team,Auchinleck Talbot
17, T. Abed
19, L. Kazoka
04, A. Kerr
20, J. Longmuir
07, A. Nimmo
16, J. Scott
02, K. Wood
Subs:
…
Goals:
Assists:
Referee Ross Hardie
Video Assistant Referee Chris Graham
Assistant Referee 1 Calum Spence
Assistant Referee 2 Alastair Taylor
Assistant VAR Official Andrew Dallas
Venue The BBSP Stadium Rugby Park [match played at Kilmarnock’s Rugby Park]
Attendance 10,723
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Match Links
Stats
Auchinleck
Celtic
Basic Stats
Overall possession
Auchinleck Talbot 48%Celtic 52%
Shots
Auchinleck Talbot 1Celtic 15
Shots on target
Auchinleck Talbot 1Celtic 5
Goalkeeper saves
Auchinleck Talbot 3Celtic 1
Fouls committed
Auchinleck Talbot 8Celtic 6
Corners
Auchinleck Talbot 1Celtic 11
In-depth match stats
Attack
Shots
Auchinleck Talbot 1Celtic 15
Shots on target
Auchinleck Talbot 1Celtic 5
Shots off target
Auchinleck Talbot 0Celtic 1 0
Defence
Fouls committed
Auchinleck Talbot 8Celtic 6
Articles
BBC
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/live/c1lzje328m8t
At a glance
Goals from Kenny and Tounekti give Celtic hard-fought win over sixth-tier side
Heroic Talbot defending frustrates O’Neill’s team, who have another Kenny strike ruled out for offside
Match was played at Rugby Park instead of Auchinleck’s Beechwood Park
ByAndrew Petrie
BBC Sport Scotland
Celtic made hard work of avoiding a historic Scottish Cup upset, with a late Sebastian Tounekti strike sealing a two-goal win over sixth-tier Auchinleck Talbot to book a last-16 tie with Dundee.
Despite interim boss Martin O’Neill making 10 changes from the midweek win at Falkirk, it was still a strong Celtic team who took the field at Rugby Park.
But the Premiership side were far from convincing in their victory, taking more than half an hour to take the lead through Johnny Kenny and squandering countless opportunities as Talbot sat in and soaked up pressure.
The visitors really should have scored at least couple more.
Kenny wasted a decent chance after only a couple of minutes and Michel-Ange Balikwisha blasted over from close range.
Irish striker Kenny also hit the bar with a header early in the second half, while Talbot’s best chance came when Celtic keeper Viljami Sinisalo fluffed a punch which almost fell to Connor Boyd.
Kenny also had the ball in the back of the net for a second time just after an hour with a delightful chip over goalkeeper Wullie Muir, but it was ruled out for offside.
Celtic’s nerves were settled three minutes from time by substitute Tounekti, who curled in an unstoppable effort from the corner of the box to kill any hopes of a Talbot equaliser.
While progression to the last 16 was the only real objective for last year’s runners-up, fans would have hoped for a confidence-boosting rout.
Instead, O’Neill posed a frustrated figure on the touchline.
Analysis: Celtic huff and puff against Talbot’s outstanding heart
It may have been backs-to-the-wall defence for almost the full 90 minutes, but the resolve Ayrshire side Talbot showed throughout was extraordinary.
They enjoyed a lap of honour at the end and rightly so. Bigger teams, assembled for millions more, have folded far more easily against Celtic.
This is not the Celtic team of old, though. Not to diminish Talbot’s achievement, but increasingly there is a sense that it doesn’t matter who it is – if you sit in a low block against this current Celtic side, you will frustrate them.
Celtic did have chance after chance though. Talbot keeper Wullie Muir made a few good saves, and the woodwork was rattled, but most of the opportunities missed by the visitors were through their own baffling inaccuracy.
Tounekti’s goal, stunning as it was, struggled to paper over the cracks.
Sebastian Tounekti celebrates scoring for Celtic against Auchinleck TalbotImage source, SNS
Image caption,
Sebastian Tounekti’s late goal finally killed the tie
Most fans would accept that, for all of Talbot’s determination, Celtic should be putting umpteen goals past a side six divisions below them.
But they didn’t. They huffed and puffed, while the away fans sang “sign a player, sign a player, sign a player” throughout. Although Kenny scored, their attacking edge remains blunt.
There are no game-changers in this side. The XI here included multiple internationals, yet they struggled to break the West of Scotland Premier Division team down for the majority of the game.
Instead, most of the plaudits went to Tommy Sloan’s men. Year after year, they leave a mark on this competition. The tag of ‘biggest weeist’ team in Scotland sticks for a reason.
Perhaps that is what the ‘magic of the cup’ is about after all.
Not necessarily upsets, but unforgettable days for whole towns, and for a squad of players made up of joiners, engineers, brickies and the like, staying within touching distance of Celtic for 87 minutes.
What they said
01:10
Media caption,
‘It was a toil’ – O’Neill
Auchinleck Talbot manager Tommy Sloan: “It was a fantastic effort from the lads. I’m not surprised they came up with it because they normally do.
“We had been going well this season up until the last few weeks and they’ve proved today that they’re capable of digging in and putting on a performance.
“We would have liked to have threatened the goal a bit more but the effort’s been fantastic and that is for another day.”
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill: “We can play much better. Obviously I made a lot of changes to the team but I’m still concerned about the match.
“It was nice to win but we can play much better, though that’s down to me making so many changes.
“It was a bit of a toil [to get a second goal], and we lacked a spark. We had lots of possession and even when we did create chances we were a bit wasteful as well.”
‘I’m not so sure I learned much’ – O’Neill knows what Celtic need after cup win
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/live/c1lzje328m8t
Media caption,
‘It was a toil’ – O’Neill
ByGeorge O’Neill
BBC Sport Scotland
Published
8 hours ago
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill admitted he did not learn much about his squad after a laborious Scottish Cup victory over sixth-tier Auchinleck Talbot.
Only captain Callum McGregor kept his place from the team that edged out Falkirk on Wednesday, as O’Neill handed opportunities to some of the fringe members of his squad.
Stephen Welsh made his first Celtic appearance since December 2024 having been recalled from his loan spell at Motherwell, winger Michel-Ange Balikwisha was brought in out of the cold, and Johnny Kenny was restored up front.
O’Neill has been forthright about the need to strengthen in the January window but, more than halfway through it, there have been no new arrivals at Parkhead.
Kenny missed a host of chances before stabbing home the opening goal from close range and substitute Sebastian Tounekti curled in a magnificent second late on.
Fans chanted “sign a player” at Rugby Park as they were left unimpressed by the fare on the pitch.
“Tonight, it would have been nice to put on a great performance,” O’Neill said. “I was very concerned about the game – but that’s how I’ve spent the last 30 years.
“We should have played much better. I’m not so sure I learned much more than I knew before.”
Celtic make hard work of seeing off sixth-tier Auchinleck Talbot
Celtic host Dundee in one of two last 16 all-Premiership ties
Published
11 hours ago
‘We’ve fair idea of what we need to do in window’
After making such hard work of a tie against part-time players, O’Neill was asked again if the club were closer to signings.
“I do dread this question,” he said, before joking: “We are making some progress and hopefully we will get the players in before the end of the season.”
O’Neill maintained his perfect domestic record this season, having originally been parachuted into Parkhead following the acrimonious departure of Brendan Rodgers in October.
The call again went out to the 73-year-old after Wilfried Nancy’s torrid 33-day tenure and he took the opportunity against Auchinleck to cast an eye over players he had previously not used.
“We made 10 changes,” O’Neill said. “A couple of lads who played tonight did not feature for me at all in the first spell. [Michel-Ange] Balikwisha, Paulo [Bernardo].
“It was a matter of trying to see what they could do. We’ve a fair idea of what we need to do [in the window] and I want to get on with it.”
Kenny scored his sixth goal of the season, but it was the chances he failed to take and also his inability to do the other aspects of lone centre-forward play that frustrated fans.
Graphic
“Most teams that play against Celtic are comfortable to leave them with possession as long as they don’t play through the lines,” former Celtic defender Jackie McNamara said.
“They force them wide and say ‘we’ll deal with it’ because they don’t have a target man in the middle to win those headers.
“If they did they would score many more goals but you can see with Kenny it’s not his game. He’s a second striker and not an out and out number nine.”
Former Hearts striker Ryan Stevenson was similarly unimpressed by some of Celtic’s starters.
“Martin will have learned a lot today about players who are on the fringes,” he said.
“He and his backroom staff will have a meeting and they’ll say ‘he didn’t grasp his opportunity’ or ‘I don’t think he did well enough’ or ‘he did do well enough’.
“James Forrest did well and Luke McCowan worked hard but there’s too many that have kind of gone through the motions.”
Kenny himself hopes his goal can spark a better run of form before crucial matches in Europe against Bologna and Utrecht, either side of a Scottish Premiership trip to league leaders Hearts.
“That’s the life of a striker, you need to be ready when something comes,” he said. “It’s been a tough few weeks. Every striker misses chances and hopefully I can go on a run.
“We know we’re a good side. We’ve had a bit of a blip but we can only focus game by game and that’s Bologna on Thursday night.”
Celtic progress in Scottish Cup with win over Auchinleck Talbot
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/january/18/celtic-progress-in-scottish-cup-with-win-over-auchinleck-talbot/
First Team
By Matthew Campbell
Share
18 Jan 2026, 7:26 pm
Scottish Cup
Fourth Round
Sunday, January 18, 2025
Rugby Park, Kilmarnock
AUCHINLECK TALBOT… 0
CELTIC… 2
(Kenny 33, Tounekti 85)
Celtic progressed to the fifth round of the Scottish Cup after seeing off Auchinleck Talbot at Rugby Park with a comfortable 2-0 win.
The Hoops looked to impose themselves early on in the match, and with just over five minutes played, Johnny Kenny found himself with an opportunity from just a few yards out after Luke McCowan had found him in the box. Kenny’s effort was saved well by the Auchinleck keeper, though the linesman’s flag went up eventually.
Paulo Bernardo was the next Celtic player to find himself with a big opportunity when James Forrest swung a dangerous cross in to the box towards the unmarked Bernardo, but his headed effort went wide of the far post.
That chance was quickly followed with another for Martin O’Neill’s men and this time it was Michel-Ange Balikwisha who got a shot away from inside the box, but his effort rose high over the bar and Auchinleck Talbot survived another Celtic attack.
The Ayrshire side had spent almost the entirety of the first 30 minutes camped on the edge of their own box, but a rare venture up the park for Auchinleck yielded a crossing opportunity from a free-kick, from which they were able to cause a bit of chaos in the Celtic box.
Had the bounce of the ball been more favourable for them, a chance to get a shot on target may have presented itself, but the Hoops were able to clear the danger eventually.
The goal which Celtic had been threatening to produce arrived with 33 minutes on the clock and it was Johnny Kenny who found the back of the net from close-range after a cross from Luke McCowan.
48%
Possession
52%
1
Shots
15
1
Shots On Target
5
1
Corners
11
8
Fouls
6
0
0
Cards
0
0
Celtic went close to doubling their lead with just a few minutes of the second half gone, but Johnny Kenny’s headed effort from a Luke McCowan cross crashed off the crossbar and the score remained 1-0.
With just under 10 minutes of the second half played, the Ayrshire side mounted an attack which ended with Luke Gillies having an ambitious shot on goal from almost 40 yards out which Vil Sinisalo was able to save with ease.
On the hour mark, Martin O’Neill turned to his bench and made his first change of the evening, swapping James Forrest for Sebastian Tounekti.
Johnny Kenny thought he had grabbed his second goal of the match shortly after the change when he clipped the ball over the goalkeeper from a tight angle, but after a VAR review, the goal was judged to be offside.
There were further changes for Celtic as the half progressed, with Michel-Ange Balikwisha and Stephen Welsh making way for Benjamin Nygren and Liam Scales.
The second goal was proving elusive for Celtic as the match approached the final 15 minutes. Anthony Ralston went close with a header after a good cross from Liam Scales, but Ralston’s headed effort across the face of goal crept just wide of the target.
Soon after, Benjamin Nygren got a shot away from inside the box, with the Swede producing a powerful effort which goalkeeper William Muir done well to parry to safety.
With five minutes of the 90 remaining, Sebastian Tounekti put the result beyond doubt and secured Celtic’s place in the fifth round with a wonderful strike from just inside the area, which he curled in to the top corner of the net to make it 2-0.
Auchinleck Talbot: Muir, Clark, McPherson, Wilson, Schoneville (Kerr 80′), Gillies, Sime, Crooks (Wood 88′), Main (Kazoka 88′), Boyd, McAvoy (Nimmo 83′)
Subs: Wood, Kerr, Nimmo, Scott, Abed, Kazoka, Longmuir
Celtic: Sinisalo, Ralston, Murray, Welsh (Scales 68′), Donovan, Paulo Bernardo, McGregor (Hatate 88′), Balikwisha (Nygren 68′), McCowan, Kenny (Yamada 87′), Forrest (Tounekti 63′)
Subs: Schmeichel, Scales, Nygren, Hyunjun Yang, Yamada, Tounekti, Maeda, Hatate, Haney
Celtic face home tie against Dundee in Scottish Cup fifth round
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/january/18/celtic-face-home-tie-against-dundee-in-scottish-cup-fifth-round/
First Team
By Paul Cuddihy, Celtic View Editor
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18 Jan 2026, 7:58 pm
Celtic will face Dundee at home in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup following this evening’s draw.
Martin O’Neill’s side booked their place in the draw with a 2-0 victory over Auchinleck Talbot at Rugby Park, courtesy of goals from Johnny Kenny and Sebastian Tounekti.
Dundee, meanwhile, also enjoyed a fourth round victory at Rugby Park, beating Kilmarnock 2-1 on Saturday afternoon.
The fifth round ties are scheduled for the weekend of February 7/8. Further information to follow.
Sebastian Tounekti: I want this goal to be the first of many
…
Manager’s post-match Celtic TV interview as Celts progress in Scottish Cup
Sterile Celtic prompt pointed fan chant as win over Auchinleck fails to quell dissenters
Matthew Elder
By Matthew Elder
Deputy Sports Editor
https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/celtic/latest-celtic-news/sterile-celtic-prompt-pointed-fan-chant-as-win-over-auchinleck-fails-to-quell-dissenters-5480120
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Published 18th Jan 2026, 20:52 GMT
Updated 18th Jan 2026, 23:45 GMT
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Progress in Scottish Cup but this was not a convincing afternoon
Celtic made it through to the Scottish Cup fifth round but a sterile performance against gutsy Auchinleck Talbot did little to quell a frustrated fanbase amid chants for the board to “sign a player”.
It took a stunning strike from substitute Sebastian Tounekti five minutes from full-time to seal a 2-0 win and finally kill off the part-timers who left with all the plaudits and a respectable scoreline as their latest cup adventure came to an end.
Celtic also had to wait 34 minutes for their opener as Talbot rose to the occasion – the much-maligned Johnny Kenny finding the net for the first time since November 9 to relieve pressure and give his own confidence a much-needed boost.
Sebastian Tounekti fires home Celtic’s second goal in the win over Auchinleck.
Sebastian Tounekti fires home Celtic’s second goal in the win over Auchinleck. | SNS Group
For all the myriad issues Celtic have faced this season, no outcome other than progression would have been considered acceptable for a £115million squad against the 60/1 part-timers from the sixth tier of Scottish football.
But even with a favourable venue switch from the more challenging confines of Beechwood Park, the 4000-capacity home of Auchinleck, Celtic fans could be forgiven for feeling trepidation before kick-off at Kilmarnock’s Rugby Park.
The Hoops had already suffered one humiliating elimination at the hands of rank outsiders this season with the ripple-effect from the Champions League defeat by Kairat Almaty in August still being felt across the club. It’s worth noting that the Kazakhstan outfit are currently rock bottom of the 36-team UCL table.
Auchinleck are also somewhat famed for Scottish Cup upsets having knocked out SPFL opposition no fewer than six times in the past seven seasons. The 1-0 win over Championship side Ayr United in 2019 is regarded as the greatest result in the club’s history – defeating Celtic, however, would have eclipsed any giant-killing act of the past 152 years of the tournament. They had fleeting moments in this cup tie – and had their fans whipped up into a frenzy on the few occasions they entered the Celtic box – but ultimately they lacked the quality to make the most of their sporadic opportunities.
Celtic ring the changes
Talbot might have had a better chance of doing so had Wilfried Nancy still been in the opposition dugout given the Frenchman’s propensity for leaving the back door wide open. However, the stability provided by the return of Martin O’Neill made Celtic much less vulnerable to such a shock as the one which befell FA Cup holders Crystal Palace at the hands of the National League North side Macclesfield Town last weekend.
The Celtic team sheet provided The Bot with some hope as O’Neill rested all of his midweek starters from the 1-0 win at Falkirk except Callum McGregor – the skipper too important to be afforded a night off even against non-league opposition.
The most notable of the ten Celtic changes was the inclusion of Michel-Ange Balikwisha in the starting line-up for the first time since September. The £5m summer signing from Royal Antwerp has been held as an example of Celtic’s rotten recruitment and unfortunately for the Belgian, his most eye-catching moment was skying an effort over the bar when he simply had to hit the target. “He did okay”, was the evaluation of O’Neill afterwards.
Stephen Welsh was also brought in for his first Celtic appearance in 13 months after being recalled from his loan at Motherwell meaning he will now be cup tied if he returns to Fir Park before the end of the transfer window.
In truth, few Celtic fringe players presented their case for more game-time in what was a laboured performance against a team they would have been expected to beat more comfortably.
Talbot’s last game was on December 20 because of postponements and frozen pitches so there was a rustiness for them to overcome as well as the obvious gulf in resource, fitness and quality.
The Auchinleck players take the applause of their fans at Rugby Park.
The Auchinleck players take the applause of their fans at Rugby Park. | SNS Group
Where Talbot could compete with Celtic was in attitude and endeavour and they did not let themselves – or their fantastic support – down in that regard as they made life very difficult for the Hoops. Their defending against some admittedly blunt Celtic attacking play was several levels above their station.
The lack of creativity in the final third was again glaring for Celtic. Right-back Julian Araujo on loan from Bournemouth remains the only January arrival 18 days into the window and Celtic fans made their feelings clear with chants interchanging between “sack the board” and “sign a player”. O’Neill did not quite guarantee it, but is hopeful of new faces in time for next weekend’s top of the table clash with Hearts at Tynecastle. Celtic need them.
The early goal that Celtic wanted and Talbot were keen to avoid never arrived. Willie Muir made a point-blank save from a Kenny volley after six minutes before the flag went up for offside. Paulo Bernardo then sent a header off target before Balikwisha stepped onto an Anthony Ralston cut-back on 24 minutes with the goal at his mercy but skelped his effort into the stand.
Talbot ventured into the Celtic box on the half hour mark as a free-kick caused panic. Viljami Sinisalo attempted an unconvincing punch and the ball was scrambled behind for a corner.
The opener arrived at the other end just moments later as Kenny showed the predatory instincts that have evaded him in recent weeks by reacting sharply to toe-poke Luke McCowan’s deflected cross high into the net.
Kenny glanced a header off the top of the Auchinleck crossbar a minute after half-time and was denied a second again by the offside flag. Benjamin Nygren was introduced off the bench on 68 minutes and forced a save from Muir, who was having a quieter night than he may have expected given Celtic’s struggles to create meaningful chances.
It was fellow sub Tounekti who finally put the game to bed on 85 minutes with a glorious curling strike from the corner of the 18-yard box that finally put any thoughts of a cup shock to bed.
Celtic now travel to Bologna for a Europa League match on Thursday while next up for Auchinleck is the visit of Thorniewood United in the West of Scotland League Cup. Back to the real world for the part-timers but with their reputation and bank balance enhanced.