League Cup hear tbreak as Hibs pay penalty
Guidetti hits treble for Parkhead side
HIBERNIAN suffered the agony of a penalty shoot-out defeat in the quarter-final of the League Cup as Dundee United progressed to the last four on a dramatic night at Easter Road.
A pulsating match ended 3-3 after 90 minutes and there were no further goals in extra time. It looked equally close in the shoot-out as both sides scored with each of their first six kicks. United’s former Hibs player John Rankin was the first player to miss but so too did the home side’s Matthew Kennedy. And when John Souttar put United 7-6 ahead it meant Hibs fullback David Gray needed to score. But he was denied by Radoslaw Cierzniak, who also saved Kennedy’s spot-kick.
The Tannadice side now go into Saturday’s semi-final draw with Rangers, Aberdeen and Celtic. The Parkhead side pro- gressed comfortably thanks to a 6-0 win over Partick Thistle, with striker John Guidetti scoring a hat-trick.
The Swede acknowledged that his team playing Rangers in the last four would be “a special” occasion. If the pair are drawn together it would be their first face-off in almost three years.
As with his manager Ronny Deila, Guidetti did not want to get hung up on the draw pitting the Glasgow clubs against one another in the semi-final in eight weeks’ time – “whatever happens, happens”, he said. “It would be a fantastic game to be a part of but come Hampden Park in the semi-final the 11 people standing opposite us are going down. This is how we feel every time we play. We want to win every game,” said the ebullient Swede.
Yet, the on-loan Manchester City striker did acknowledge the fixture held appeal for him even in childhood. “We all know it is a very special game,” he said. “This is the fixture I used to wake up at 11:30 in the morning to watch when I was a small kid. It’s normal. It’s fantastic. It’s very spicy. You see it means a lot to people and the atmosphere is always amazing. You can even hear it through the television. It’s an amazing football match but there are four teams left – not only two – and we know Hampden Park will be amazing as is always the case with Celtic fans.”
Guidetti did not want to be drawn on his future beyond his year’s loan, by which time his City contract will have expired. Deila questioned the £5 million figure quoted as the Manchester club’s asking price and reiterated his belief that a permanent deal was possible.
“You never know [if we can hang on to him] but it’s also important to understand that John Guidetti is good at Celtic, it’s not just because of himself. The team is working hard for him and helping him get the right chances,” the Celtic manager said. “This relationship has been fantastic for him from the first minute and the grass is not always greener on the other side. Sometimes you have to think about that. The relationship here is good and I think John is positive about it as well.”
There was nothing positive that Partick Thistle manager Alan Archibald could say about his team on an evening when Conard Balatoni’s 44th-minute straight red card for visitors that were then 1-0 down, was a factor in their eventual drubbing.
“His [Balatoni’s challenge on Guidetti] probably is a red card nowadays,” he said. “I think the reaction of the Celtic players made it look like that as well. I don’t think that helps either.”
At Pittodrie, Adam Rooney netted the only goal of the game as holders Aberdeen overcame the stiff resistance of Hamilton Academical to progress. The Dons now move a step closer to retaining the trophy, but the star of the show was Accies goalkeeper Michael McGovern, who pulled off a string of fine stops to prevent the scoreline being any worse for his team.