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Aberdeen 1 Celtic 1 (Aberdeen win 4-3 on penalties; 1-1 at 90 mins)
ALL hail Jimmy Thelin. For long enough, he turned this Scottish Cup final into an exercise in torture, a rearguard action of Alamo proportions.
Having lost 19 goals in his previous five encounters with Celtic, there was no way he was ever going to go toe-to-toe with Brendan Rodgers’ treble-chasers. He switched to five at the back, had his two strikers effectively playing in midfield at times, made no apologies for setting out to spoil the occasion.
And you know what? He got it bang-on, pulling off the heist of all heists in the end after a thrilling win on penalty-kicks. No one gave his team a snowball’s chance in hell, but the Swede found a way and, whatever the purists may make of the way he did it, he deserves all the respect in the world.
Aberdeen captain Graeme Shinnie lifts the Scottish Cup trophy at Hampden
Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel diverts the ball into his own net to make it 1-1
In boxing, styles make fights. Same goes for football. And when it all boils down to it, it is the getting of results that matters rather than the methods used to bring them about.
Thelin’s achievement, of course, is made all the more impressive by the fact his team had to come back from being a goal down thanks to an unfortunate deflection from centre-back Alfie Dorrington towards the end of the first half to help the Dons lift the old trophy for the first time in 35 years – another affair decided by a shoot-out.
Much will be made of how badly Rodgers’ side played. They really were awful, but that’s down, in no small part, to Aberdeen inviting them to try and break the lines and standing firm throughout.
Kasper Schmeichel’s display in the Parkhead outfit’s goal played a big part in things too. He inexplicably diverted a Shayden Morris cross into his own net with seven minutes of regulation time remaining – an atrocious error that will give his Danish critics a field day – and failed to get close to any of the Dons’ four penalty-kicks in the shootout.
Celtic take the lead after Aberdeen defende Alfie Dorrington’s own goal
However, the real on-field heroes belonged on the other side. Goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov stopped Daizen Maeda winning it for Celtic three minutes into time added-on at the end of the game when spreading himself when one-on-one with the Japanese.
And in the shoot-out, he pulled off two excellent saves low to his right to deny Callum McGregor and Alistair Johnston. Graeme Shinnie, who also captained Inverness to cup glory in 2015, Dante Polvara, Oday Dabbagh and Ante Palaversa all scored for the Dons, rendering Celtic’s successful efforts from substitutes Johnny Kenny and Luke McCowan meaningless.
Special mention must go to Senegalese forward Pape Gueye too. When he came on for Topi Keskinen on 57 minutes, Aberdeen really weren’t achieving much in forward positions.
However, his strength and presence really changed the flow of the encounter. He gave his side options in attack, held up the ball, was willing to run with it, bang the opposition centre-halves around a bit.
Celtic captain Callum McGregor is dejected after missing his penalty in the shootout
His role wasn’t exactly a headline one, but it was massive in the grand scheme of things. He did as much as anyone to change the match. Having started the season like a runaway train, he has failed to fire after returning from injury.
No one, however, should forget his contribution to a remarkable and wholly unexpected glory day. And a thoroughly deserved one.
From the get-go, Thelin’s strategy was clear. To describe this game as utterly turgid until the closing stages of the regulation 90 minutes would be an understatement in the extreme.
It took 28 minutes before we even had a proper shot at goal, an effort from Celtic left-back Greg Taylor whizzing over from 25 yards without ever really looking like it would trouble Aberdeen goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov.
Until that stage, the Red Army had been sustaining themselves on very thin gruel. When striker Kevin Nisbet picked the ball up around 10 yards inside his own half with his back to goal, they let out the kind of roar you’d expect for something remotely significant. That’s how bad it had been.
Needless to say, Nisbet was dispossessed on the turn and Celtic returned to playing a pointless game of passy that never really looked destined to deliver a breakthrough.
When that breakthrough finally did arrive by virtue of Dorrington’s own goal, it was a messy affair representative of a messy game.
Arne Engels delivered a corner from the left, Cameron Carter-Vickers got his head to it and it deflected off the body of Dorrington before hitting Mitov’s left-hand post and bouncing into the net.
If nothing else, it forced Thelin to show he could adopt a Plan B, react to losing the opener and find a way to offer some kind of credible threat. That didn’t emerge during the remainder of the first half with the teams going in at the break having failed to deliver a shot on target between them.
However, there was a degree of improvement when the teams re-emerged. A Graeme Shinnie free-kick proved just too high for Jack Milne at the back post and, on 62 minutes, Nisbet passed up an excellent opportunity.
Graeme Shinnie and Cameron Carter-Vickers square up at Hampden
Leighton Clarkson delivered a fine free-kick from the left to pick Nisbet out, but he couldn’t adjust his body accordingly and the ball bounced off his shoulder and over the crossbar from just a matter of yards out.
Engels came close to killing it stone-dead moments later with a low drive from outside the area that rattled off the outside of Mitov’s right-hand upright, but Gueye’s purpose and presence had made the Dons much more of a serious proposition and they got their reward for creeping back into the game ever so steadily with another crazy goal with seven minutes of the 90 remaining.
Morris took a pass out wide on the right and fired a low ball into the heart of the danger area. It was Schmeichel’s all day long. Quite what got into his head when he got down to get a hand to the ball is anyone’s guess.
He got his right glove to it easily, but it went straight under it before skidding off in the direction of the back of the net. Not that the punters behind the goal cared a jot. Their celebrations were so excessive that the game had to be held up before those who had spilled onto the trackside in exultation could get their heads together and find a way back to their seats.
Daizen Maeda, the player of the season, endured perhaps his quietest afternoon of the campaign. Yet, he could have crowned himself the hero once again three minutes into time added-on when latching onto a loose ball, outpacing the Aberdeen rearguard and leaving himself one-on-one with the keeper.
Mitov proved his equal, though, advancing from his line and spreading himself wide to make a crucial block that took the encounter into extra-time.
Polvara missed a brilliant chance, volleying over from a Gueye knockdown, in the 107th minute with sub Jeffrey Schlupp then hitting the bar with a thunderous effort from distance moments later.
Neither side could land that killer blow, though, and a hard-fought victory had to be eked out in the toughest way possible.
It looked from the off as though Thelin would have been happy seeing this out through a penalty shoot-out. And he duly did. Guaranteed group-stage football in Europe beckons next season. Questions about him are no longer high on the agenda.
The Swede, despite this being the ultimate rollercoaster of a campaign, has shown himself an adaptable coach. A guy intent on being a winner at all costs. And it’s a while since the Red Army had one of those to rally behind.
