1 – 5
“Kasper Høgh struck within two minutes of kick-off to put Celtic ahead, giving the visitors an almost immediate platform that Kilmarnock would never recover from.”
Pivotal“Høgh grabbed his second of the game, assisted by Benjamin Nygren, to double Celtic's advantage and begin the most damaging five-minute spell of the match.”
Pivotal“Just two minutes after completing his brace, Høgh completed his hat-trick with a right-footed finish assisted by Camilo Duran, sending the away end into raptures and killing the contest entirely before the half-hour mark had long passed.”
Pivotal“Michael Schjönning-Larsen gave Kilmarnock supporters something to cheer with a goal assisted by Tom Lowery, pulling one back to make it 1-4 and offering brief hope of a grandstand finish that never materialised.”
“Substitute Luke McCowan scored within sixty seconds of coming off the bench to complete the scoring at 1-5, underlining the depth at Celtic's disposal and putting a definitive stamp on an already emphatic result.”
Kilmarnock
Celtic
Outstanding performance
Celtic•AttackerCeltic were utterly dominant from the first whistle at Rugby Park, with Kasper Høgh announcing himself as the story of the opening weekend by completing a hat-trick inside 35 minutes. The statistics tell the full tale: Celtic controlled 64% of the ball, registered 33 shots to Kilmarnock's 10, and created ten big chances to the hosts' one. Brendan Rodgers' side pressed relentlessly from kick-off, going ahead inside two minutes and never once relinquishing control, with the match's contest dissolved entirely by the interval at 0-3. Kilmarnock offered brief resistance through Michael Schjönning-Larsen's consolation goal in the 56th minute, but Celtic's depth told when substitute Luke McCowan added a fifth within seconds of coming on in the 74th minute, rounding off a performance that signals clear title ambitions from the Parkhead club. For Kilmarnock, a 5-1 home loss on the opening day raises immediate questions about their defensive structure and their ability to compete against the division's elite, with goalkeeper Callum Osmand's eleven saves the only modest consolation in a chastening afternoon.
How entertaining was this match?
James Forrest takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Corner awarded.
Substitution: Callum Osmand comes on for Kasper Waarst Hogh.
Jamie Brandon takes a right-footed shot, but it is blocked.
Kasper Waarst Hogh takes a left-footed shot, but it is saved.
Luke McCowan takes a left-footed shot, but it's blocked.
Luke McCowan takes a left-footed shot, but it's blocked.
Bailey Rice comes on for Tyreece John Jules.
Luke McCowanLuke McCowan takes a shot with his right foot and scores.
Kieran Tierney's right-footed shot is blocked.
Goal! Luke McCowan scores, making it 1-5.
On comes Mark OHara, replacing Michael Schjonning Larsen.
James Forrest comes on for Benjamin Nygren.
On comes Luke McCowan, off goes Yang Hyun-Jun.
Goal! Luke McCowan scores, making it 1-5.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Sebastian Tounekti comes on for Camilo Duran.
Camilo Duran takes a left-footed shot, but it's saved.
Aaron Tshibola takes a shot with his head, but it's saved.
Corner awarded.
Michael Schjonning Larsen takes a shot with his right foot and scores.
assist: Tom Lowery
Goal! Michael Schjonning Larsen scores with an assist from Tom Lowery. The score is now 1-4.
Goal! Michael Schjonning Larsen scores with an assist from Tom Lowery. The score is now 1-4.
Kieran Tierney takes a left-footed shot, but it is saved.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Camilo Duran takes a left-footed shot, but it hits the post.
Benjamin NygrenShot from Benjamin Nygren with his left foot results in a goal.
Goal! Benjamin Nygren scores, making it 0-4.
Colby Donovan comes on for Alistair Johnston.
The first half ends with a score of 0-3.
Offside.
Joe Hugill takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Kasper Waarst Hogh takes a shot with his head and scores a goal.
assist: Camilo Durán
Goal! Kasper Waarst scores to make it 0-3, assisted by Camilo Duran.
Kasper Waarst Hogh takes a shot with his right foot and scores.
assist: Benjamin Nygren
Goal! Kasper Waarst Hogh scores to make it 0-2, assisted by Benjamin Nygren.
Arne Engels takes a left-footed shot, but it is saved.
Goal! The score is now 0-3.
Goal! The score is now 0-2.
Joe Hugill receives a yellow card.
Benjamin Nygren attempts a header but misses the shot.
Kieran Tierney takes a left-footed shot, but it's saved.
Kasper Waarst Hogh takes a shot with his head but misses.
Kieran Tierney takes a left-footed shot, but it's blocked.
Kasper Waarst Hogh's header is saved.
Shot by Benjamin Nygren with his right foot, but it's saved.
Camilo Duran's left-footed shot is saved.
Corner awarded.
Arne Engels takes a right-footed shot, but it's saved.
Corner awarded.
Corner awarded.
Tyreece John Jules takes a right-footed shot, but it's saved.
Joe Hugill takes a right-footed shot, but it's blocked.
Tom Lowery takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Corner awarded.
Greg Kiltie's right-footed shot is saved.
Kasper Waarst Hogh attempts a header but misses the shot.
Corner awarded.
Camilo Duran takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Aaron Tshibola takes a right-footed shot, but it's saved.
Kasper Waarst Hogh takes a shot with his head and scores a goal.
assist: Arne Engels
Goal! Kasper Waarst scores, making it 0-1.
Kick-off has occurred!
Celtic travel to a newly-relaid grass pitch at Rugby Park looking to make it a perfect two wins from two, while Kilmarnock desperately need a response after a dramatic 4-3 opening-day defeat at St Johnstone. With this being the 250th league meeting between the clubs and Celtic riding an eight-game winning run in the fixture, Killie must summon something special to halt the champions.
