Champions League hopes dashed?

Celtic Glasgow vs. LASK LIVE starting at 9 p.m.

Kasper Jörgensen(Bild: GEPA)

LASK will likely have to shelve its dreams of qualifying for the Champions League for the first time already at the halfway point of the playoffs. In Wednesday’s first leg at Celtic Glasgow, the Linz team’s chronic inability to finish cost them the rewards of an ambitious performance, and following a 0–3 loss in front of their home crowd against Scotland’s record champions, they now face an enormous challenge.

In contrast to the Upper Austrians, Celtic shone with maximum efficiency. Benjamin Nygren (26th minute) and a brace from Camilo Duran (38th, 67th) secured Celtic a victory that was perhaps a bit too decisive. Although the storied team had significantly more possession, they didn’t create any real scoring chances.

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Here are the match statistics:

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LASK took the lead after 30 seconds: Offside
The Linz team wasn’t intimidated by the impressive crowd of 55,000 fans and came out firing right away in front of 700 traveling LASK supporters. Just 30 seconds in, following a magnificent finish by Moses Usor, the ball hit the back of the net, but an offside call quickly dampened the celebration. Barely a minute later, after another—and clean—counterattack, Samuel Adeniran, alone in front of goalie Viljami Sinisalo, pushed the ball just wide of the goal instead of passing to the perfectly positioned Usor (2nd minute).

Another attempt by Adeniran (11th) and a harmless header by Danek (13th) were both saved by Sinisalo, and Glasgow gradually gained more control of the game after an exciting opening phase. It wasn’t until Nygren’s powerful long-range shot that the deadlock was broken. LASK, however, seemed hardly unsettled. The Athletiker continued their usual no-nonsense attacks and celebrated once more—but again to no avail. Adeniran had started a fraction of a second too early on a cross from Usor (35th).

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LASK Failed to Capitalize, Celtic Was Ruthless
It was all the more bitter that Celtic made it 2-0 before halftime. The situation was a carbon copy of the first goal; this time, Duran hammered a poorly cleared ball into the net from distance. After the restart, Celtic applied heavy pressure in search of the decisive goal.

The home team dictated the play, and Callum McGregor struck the post (56'). For LASK, it seemed like they were cursed. On their first dangerous attack after the break, Usor shot over the goal while lying on his back (60’); shortly afterward, the Nigerian was denied by Sinisalo from a few meters out (62’).

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And while this promising spell for the Linz side fizzled out, Celtic once again got the job done. LASK gave the attackers plenty of space, and Duran once again finished irresistibly. In the closing minutes, Sascha Horvath and his teammates at least sought a consolation goal. Adeniran was denied once again by Sinisalo (76'), but they couldn’t find the back of the net.

Celtic Glasgow – LASK 3–0 (2–0)
Glasgow, Celtic Park, 55,000, Referee Schärer (SUI). 
The second leg will be played next Tuesday (9:00 p.m.) in Linz. The winner advances to the group stage of the Champions League; the loser advances to the group stage of the Europa League.

Goals:
1:0 (26') Nygren
2:0 (38') Duran
3:0 (67') Duran

Celtic: Sinisalo – Donovan (83' Ralston), Carter-Vickers, Trusty, Tierney (76' Scales) – McGregor, Nygren, Baur (64' Hatate) – Duran (83' Hassan), Högh, Yang (76' Tounekti)

LASK: Jungwirth – Jörgensen, Mbuyamba, Tornich, Andrade, Bello – Danek (65' Schöpf), Ljubicic, Horvath – Adeniran, Usor (74' Lang)

Yellow card: Jörgensen