Ciftci shows hunger and a touch of class
Turk displays appetite and turns provider with deft-touch assist as Celtic warm up for qualifier in style
NADIR CIFTCI required only 25 minutes of his debut last night to suggest he could be the next hero to wear the No.7 jersey for Celtic.
The Turk set up the game’s only goal with a lovely touch and seemed determined to show off his skills every time he got the ball against Real Sociedad. There were back-heels, flicks and some neat tricks thrown in. As starts go, this was not bad.
As warm-up matches go, this was exactly what Celtic needed. David Moyes’s side are bursting with talent and gave their hosts a good workout five days ahead of their Champions League qualifier against FC Stjarnan.
The Celtic line-up was, as you would imagine, not a million miles from the team which is likely to start next Wednesday. Charlie Mulgrew partnered Dedryck Boyata in the centre of defence, Virgil van Dijk is suspended for the game, while Stuart Armstrong has recovered from a dead leg picked up against Den Bosch.
Although Ronnie Deila may well be tempted to start Ciftci after his impressive first impression.
“I am very happy with him,” said the Celtic manager. “He showed tonight what he can add to the team. He is a good footballer and is going to be an important player for us. He is available for Wednesday and is an option. We shall see.
“We need to be sharper and quicker, but that will come by Wednesday. It was good to meet such a good team. That was a more controlled performance and we defended as we did last season.”
The Spaniards were first to create anything in the game when Yuri Berchiche’s swerving shot from 20 yards forced Craig Gordon into a smart save after three minutes. Then, after quarter of an hour, the Celtic goalkeeper was beaten by Sergio Canales’s low shot which bounced back off the bottom of the post.
Celtic’s first opportunity, on 22 minutes, came courtesy of a Stefan Johansen corner which was headed towards goal at the back post by Mikael Lustig, the Real goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli making a straightforward save.
Scott Brown doesn’t do friendlies and referee Bobby Madden had to have a word after the captain clattered into one challenge too many.
Boyata came close to a goal on 33 minutes when, from another fine Johansen corner, he sent a bullet of a header just over the crossbar. Leigh Griffiths wasn’t far away from a goal himself five minutes later. He was found by Nir Bitton’s clever pass inside the box, got the ball on his left and the striker’s shot was deflected wide.
Griffiths almost scored what would have been a cracker the other side of half-time when he shot against a post.
Ciftci came on to a rousing reception after 67 minutes and he immediately set up a goal for Gary Mackay-Steven who scored his third goal in three pre-season games with a neat finish.
Ciftci was denied a goal of his own by a fine save from Rulli. Meanwhile, Saidy Janko also made his debut. A good night for Deila before the real business begins.