Europe Россия Внешние малые острова США Китай Объединённые Арабские Эмираты Корея Индия

Celtic take the lead after only 21 seconds in the Old Firm Derby against Rangers thanks to Daizen Maeda's 'freak' goal at Ibrox

7 months ago 50
  • Rangers welcomed Celtic to Ibrox in the final meeting of the sides in the league
  • Celtic led their arch rivals by a point as they looked to win their third straight title
  • Ally McCoist's pre-Old Firm comments were reckless and irresponsible, says CHRIS SUTTON - It's All Kicking Off podcast 

By Tum Balogun

Published: 12:13 BST, 7 April 2024 | Updated: 12:55 BST, 7 April 2024

Celtic stunned the crowd at Ibrox when they took the lead after only 21 seconds thanks to Daizen Maeda's freak goal against Rangers

The Old Firm rivals came into the clash separated by just a point, with Brendan Rodgers' side leading the way at the top. 

Celtic have prevailed in both matchups this season and came into the tie in good form, having recovered from a blip by their standards at the start of the year. 


Maeda charged down an attempted clearance from James Tavernier and saw the ball cannon past a helpless Jack Butland in goal. 

Though speedy, the Japan international's strike was not fast enough to go down as the quickest goal in Old Firm history. That honour is held by Mail Sport's Chris Sutton. 

Daizen Maeda (left) profited from a James Tavernier error and scored a bizarre opener

🗣️ "A breathtaking start to a breathtaking derby!"

Daizen Maeda pounces on James Tavernier's error to give Celtic the lead vs Rangers inside the first THIRTY seconds - watch live on @SkyFootball 📺 pic.twitter.com/lQ26ifFk0B

— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) April 7, 2024

Brendan Rodgers is looking to win his third Scottish Premiership in his second spell with the club

The former Celtic striker struck after only 19 seconds of his side's 3-2 defeat to their arch rivals in December 2022. 

With Celtic not being at their scintillating best of recent seasons, it has given a chance to to Philippe Clement's side, who have won 11 of their last 12 Scottish Premiership matches. 

The Ibrox outfit have won just one of their last 12 championships, several coming as they made they way back up the lower leagues, with them now only two ahead of their rivals' all-time tally of 53. 

But those aspirations of keeping Celtic at bay took a further hit in the 34th minute when Matt O'Riley confidently placed his penalty past Butland after Connor Goldson was adjudged to have handled in the area. 

Read Entire Article