Nygren Seals Celtic Win At Pittodrie In Tight Aberdeen Clash

Add as a preferred source on Google

Celtic climbed to second in the Scottish Premiership after a 2-1 win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie, cutting the gap to leaders Hearts to five points and extending a long unbeaten sequence against the Dons.

The victory also meant Celtic moved above Rangers in the standings, with Martin O'Neill's team showing resilience under pressure during a tight second half, as Aberdeen pushed hard for an equaliser that never arrived despite several late opportunities.

The visitors struck first after only five minutes, when a corner was flicked on by Liam Scales and Kieran Tierney reacted quickest inside the six-yard box, steering the ball past Dimitar Mitov from close range to silence the home support.

Aberdeen responded midway through the first half, drawing level in the 19th minute after Scales brought down Toyosi Olusanya inside the area, and Kevin Nisbet calmly converted the resulting penalty, sending the ball beyond the reach of the Celtic goalkeeper.

The decisive moment arrived on 67 minutes, when substitutes combined for Celtic's winner; James Forrest delivered a low cross from the right, and Benjamin Nygren darted in front of the defence to poke the ball beyond Mitov from close range.

Both sides then created promising openings during the final quarter, with Aberdeen pressing for a second equaliser and Celtic threatening on the counter, but the Hoops managed the closing stages well and protected the narrow lead to secure three vital points.

Celtic's dominance over Aberdeen continued, with the latest result stretching an unbeaten run against the Dons in all competitions to 34 matches, including 27 victories and seven draws, underlining a sustained superiority in this Scottish Premiership fixture.

{TABLE_1}

The Pittodrie record also remained strong for Celtic, who have now won 16 of their last 19 Scottish Premiership visits there, drawing the other three, while the Hoops have triumphed in 21 of their most recent 23 Wednesday league fixtures.

Aberdeen are now winless in five league games, yet Nisbet gained some personal encouragement, as the spot-kick meant Nisbet has scored in three consecutive Scottish Premiership home matches for the first time, even though that contribution could not prevent another defeat to Celtic.