Celtic travelled to the Stadio Olimpico to take on Lazio in the Europa League, and they scripted a memorable victory on the night by coming from a goal behind to win 2-1.
Lazio started on the front foot, and Celtic were defending in numbers. Immobile opened the scoring for the Italian side as he slotted the ball past Forster. However, the Hoops showed confidence from there on in and had some good spell in possession. Forrest equalised in the 38th minute after Elyounoussi found him with a pass. Lazio came close to scoring before half time, but the Celtic defence somehow weathered the storm to go in level at the break.
Celtic were off the blocks quickly in the second half, and they started to dominate the game. Lazio though continued to threaten on the counter. The game got a bit frantic in the end, and Forster made a few crucial saves to keep his side in the tie. The game was heading for a draw before a shocking mistake from Berisha gifted Celtic a goal at the death as Ntcham finished it calmly to give the Hoops a 2-1 win.
Here is how Lennon’s men fared.
Fraser Forster 8
Had one dodgy moment in the box while dealing with a corner in the first half. Apart from that, he saved everything that came his way. Made an enormous contribution in the last quarter of the game with some crucial saves.
Christopher Jullien 6
Was beaten in the air which led to Lazio’s opener. Positioning was sometimes off in the first half. Looked much better in the second half and did his job well overall.
Kristoffer Ajer 7
Read the dangers well and made some crucial challenges to stop the Lazio attack. Played the ball forward with confidence and threw his body on the line when required.
Jonny Hayes 7
Was considered as a weak point before the start of the game but Hayes held his own at the back. Had some trouble in one on situations but apart from that, he did a fine job. Played with energy and showed a great work rate.
Hatem Abd Elhamed 7
Was loose in possession once or twice. However, defensively, he was reliable, and his reading of the game was on point. Went off with a groin injury in the second half.
Scott Brown 7
Was a bit erratic by the end of the game but overall the captain showed that he could deal with toughest of challenges even at this stage of his career. Looked assured in possession and helped defensively.
Callum McGregor 7.5
Played a few incisive forward passes and linked up play well in the middle.
Ryan Christie 8
Covered every blade of grass and he was one of the significant reasons why Celtic started the second half strongly.
Mohamed Elyounoussi 6
Was selfish on quite a few occasions as he failed to pick his head up to find the pass. Picked out the right pass though for the equaliser. Worked hard and stretched play with his movement but could have been better with his decision making.
James Forrest 8
Scored the equaliser with a thumping finish from a tight angle. Played in the wing-back role and had to do a lot of defending and tracking back which he did well overall.
Odsonne Edouard 5
Cut a frustrated figure throughout the game. His touch was off and wasn’t able to link up play effectively. Got a golden chance in the second half which he should have buried. However, found the right ball to Ntcham in the end who scored the winner.
Substitutes
Olivier Ntcham 9
Played some good passes after coming on and stole the show in the end with a dinked finish.
Nir Bitton 6
Kept things tight at the back after coming on.
Moritz Bauer N/A
Didn’t play enough to warrant a rating.
