#celtic

#celtic

The debutant Kelechi Iheanacho scored a last-gasp penalty as mutinous Celtic fans were left celebrating a 2-1 victory over Kilmarnock that moved them back to the top of the Premiership. After a summer in which the club were widely deemed to have failed to adequately bolster their squad in the summer before crashing out of the Champions League at the hands of Kairat Almaty, angry supporters held a crisis meeting last week and decided to boycott the opening 12 minutes of the Rugby Park fixture.

Motherwell have signed "comfortable and reliable" centre-half Stephen Welsh on a season-long loan from Scottish Premiership rivals Celtic. The 25-year-old has played 68 games for Celtic since coming through the Scottish champions' youth system but has not featured this season for Brendan Rodgers' side. He spent the second half of last season on loan to Mechelen as they finished eighth in the Belgian Pro League, playing 17 games, starting all but two of them.

The pressure of playing for a big club is something that I thrive on,

"He is a really talented, exciting player and with a good level of experience at a high level already, so he will be an important player for us moving forward. He loves to attack and can play both sides of the pitch so we are sure he will give the team some great options. Having spoken to Michel-Ange I know he is very excited about joining Celtic and he wants to be a big success with us, so we look forward to working with him."

Beyond midnight, many miles beyond the borders of Europe, Temirlan Anarbekov was writing his name into Celtic infamy. The 21yearold rookie goalkeeper had made the penalty shootout saves that guided Kazakhstan's Kairat Almaty into the Champions League group stage. Adam Idah, Luke McCowan and Daizen Maeda each saw attempts saved by a keeper turned to in emergency. Kasper Schmeichel, his opposite number, could only offer congratulations as Celtic incurred the heavy cost of a poor performance over 210 goalless minutes before their lack of composure from the spot.

Four of Scotland's five European representatives remain in contention for UEFA competitions, with Celtic, Rangers, and Aberdeen seeking places in the Champions League and Europa League. Hibernian faces a tough Conference League qualifier against Legia Warsaw without a safety net, as UEFA's nation ranking depends on points collected over five years. Scotland ranks 17th and aims for 15th to improve future qualification routes, needing to close a 2.8 points gap from Austria, which is equivalent to winning seven league matches.

Steven Berghuis scored twice, leading Ajax to a 5-1 victory over Celtic in the Como Cup semi-final, showcasing their attacking prowess and tactical dominance.

Andrej Bacanin has attracted interest from clubs like Celtic, Rangers, Ajax, and Udinese after impressive performances last season and with Serbia's youth team.

Rangers will begin their defence at home to either University of Stirling or St Johnstone in the first round of the Scottish Women's Premier League's knockout competition.

One club away from a majority of American owners, the investment trend in Scottish soccer has grown significantly, with six clubs now under U.S. ownership.

Xavier Mbuyamba, a former Chelsea centre-half, is attracting interest from Rangers and other clubs after Volendam opened the door for his transfer at 433,000.

"When I left Kilmarnock back in 2019, it was that bit easier because I was progressing. I wanted to go and try and play for the biggest team in Scotland..."