Celtic made it two pre-season trophies from two as they followed up their Cork Super Cup triumph with a dominant 4-0 win over Newcastle United at Celtic Park to claim the Adidas Trophy.
Brendan Rodgers’ side looked sharp, aggressive, and composed as they dismantled their Premier League opponents with goals from Arne Engels, Johnny Kenny, Hyun-jun Yang, and Liam Scales.
The opening stages were cagey, with both sides trying to play out from the back. Celtic’s press, however, quickly took hold, with Johnny Kenny forcing errors high up the pitch and Daizen Maeda putting pressure on Kieran Trippier early on. After Engels was tripped by Joe Willock in the box, the Belgian stepped up and calmly slotted home to give the hosts the lead.
Celtic doubled their advantage just before the break, with a long ball from Kasper Schmeichel catching Nick Pope in no man’s land. The Newcastle keeper made a hash of the clearance and Kenny reacted quickest, nodding into an empty net to make it 2-0. The striker had earlier missed a golden opportunity after great work from Yang, but he didn’t let it rattle him.
The Hoops’ intensity didn’t drop after the restart. Maeda, terrorising Newcastle all afternoon, picked up a clever pass from Luke McCowan and squared for Yang to fire home the third. The South Korean winger was electric on the right and capped his performance with a tidy finish.
The fourth and final goal came from the returning Kieran Tierney, who received a hero’s welcome off the bench. The left-back, back in green and white for the first time in years, delivered a pinpoint cross for Liam Scales to bullet a header past Pope.
Brendan Rodgers rang the changes on the hour mark, introducing ten new faces including Paulo Bernardo and Benjamin Nygren. The Swede looked confident and comfortable, demanding the ball and taking responsibility at set-pieces. Idah linked well with him and won a free-kick after being brought down on the edge of the box by Dan Burn.
While Newcastle looked for a late consolation, Viljami Sinisalo came up with a sharp save in the 91st minute to preserve the clean sheet, his only major involvement after replacing Schmeichel.
The win, following up their 1-0 victory over Cork City, means Celtic have now lifted silverware twice in pre-season, albeit a friendly. But Rodgers will be encouraged by the team’s performance, particularly against higher-level opposition.
Trusty looked more assured at the back, Maeda and Yang were relentless going forward, and Tierney’s return added a layer of excitement as Celtic prepare to face Ajax in Como. There’s work to be done, but the signs are encouraging as the new campaign approaches.
