Sky Sports Chris Sutton’s title race question as he delivers surprising verdict on Celtic’s win over Hibs.
Celtic have opened up a commanding lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership after beating Hibs 3-0 at Parkhead this weekend.
With Aberdeen’s draw against St Johnstone and Rangers still playing Ross County in Dingwall this afternoon, Celtic are currently nine points ahead of Jimmy Thelin’s side and 14 points ahead of the Ibrox club at the top of the Scottish Premiership table. Celtic dealt with a Hibs team that appeared to be serious about winning the game rather than just sitting back and absorbing the pressure. Hibs wasted three early chances to take the lead at Celtic Park before Arne Engels scored Celtic’s opening goal in the sixth minute.In the end, a Joe Newell own goal and a fantastic Kyogo Furuhashi sealed Celtic’s victory over Hibs, although it was far from easy for the Easter Road team, who created numerous chances to win the game. Which is why former Celtic striker Chris Sutton’s judgement on Hibs’ victory so startling.
Chris Sutton asks if the title race is ‘over already’ after unusual Celtic verdict vs Hibs
Sutton is known for his blunt and honest comments on Celtic, whether they win or lose, but will many people agree with his summary of the Hoops’ victory? Sutton told BBC 606 [4m], “Celtic defeated Hibs 3-0.” Brendan Ball easily crosses the finish line once more. “We’re nine points ahead of Aberdeen, our main rivals. Is the league already over? The victory was far from comfortable, as Hibs continued to press Celtic and create chances in the first half, forcing Brendan Rodgers to do something he rarely does before halftime.
Three reasons why Celtic’s win over Hibs was far from ‘comfortable’
While the statistics show Celtic dominated the game, Hibs still had 14 shots on goal, nine of which were on target, which is unprecedented for any club visiting Parkhead this season. To put that in perspective, Celtic had 12 shots with just three on target in their win over Rangers, while Jimmy Thelin’s side had eight shots with only two on target in their draw with Aberdeen.
The second reason is that Kasper Schmeichel was Celtic’s man of the match in yesterday’s win. The big Dane made nine saves to keep a clean sheet against the capital club which is, again, unheard of from a visiting team. The third was what Brendan Rodgers did during halftime. After Hibs caused problems for the Celtic right side in the first half, the manager substituted his greatest goal threat, Nicolas Kuhn, with James Forrest.
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