Edouard goal seals ideal start for caretaker boss
After all the hullabaloo that preceded his departure, the start of life for Celtic after Neil Lennon was always liable to be an anti-climax.
The records will show John Kennedy picked up a win in his first match in caretaker charge of the club he starred for as a player.
Likewise that under his charge, the Hoops bounced back from the embarrassment of their loss to Ross County in Dingwall with an efficient display.
However if supporters watching from a distance had been hoping to witness a dramatic change, this was not it.
In fact, the game was a near carbon copy of the teams’ meeting at the ground 10 days previously which ended with the same score and was settled by an early goal from the home side.
“The first half was good for us but in the second half we lost our way a little bit,” said Kennedy.
“When Aberdeen put pressure on, we got stressed and flustered. We gave the ball away cheaply at times.
“We lacked a bit of discipline in terms of being calm and clear in our minds but in terms of how we saw the game out, that was pleasing.
“It feels like we’ve been in that situation so many times this season at 1-0 and we concede.
“You could see that in the players, that subconscious thing in their minds.
“You must still have belief at 1-0 to keep doing the right things and that will take you to 2-0.
“That’s something we’ve got to work on psychologically. That’s because of our experiences this year so far.
“But we have to park that and get rid of it. That will come with results and confidence.”
Kennedy’s first team selection as Celtic caretaker was always going to be interesting.
Patryk Klimala ahead of Leigh Griffiths might not have been everybody’s pick, but his decision to have skipper Scott Brown out on the pitch and Ismaila Soro on the sidelines rather than the other way around was probably the biggest talking point.
Ryan Christie’s failure to take any of the dozen chances which came in the loss to Ross County last week was a tough experience for his former boss.
Here, under a different manager, the Scotland internationalist wasted no time putting the Dingwall experience behind him.
Picking up the ball on the right flank he showed a neat turn of foot to cut inside and roll a pass perfectly into the feet of Odsonne Edouard.
The French striker has been prolific since the turn of the year and, with the aid of a deflection off Tommie Hoban, he made it nine goals in nine games.
Soon after it was nearly two, Klimala sliding in at the back post failing to give Jonjoe Kenny’s perfect delivery the finish it deserved.
Aberdeen left Callum Hendry, their match winner against Kilmarnock, on the bench, going with Florian Kamberi and Niall Mcginn up front.
It was a defender, though, who came closest to giving them the goal they craved.
Ash Taylor fairly powered a header in on goal from Mcginn’s cross but Hoops keeper Scott Bain was up to the test making.
Aberdeen manager Derek Mcinnes would have needed no telling this was a good time to play Celtic but his side lacked the courage of their convictions.
One blunder, from Dean Campbell, literally had him hoping up and down in frustration.
Aberdeen had a few near things in the final half hour, with Considine going close, but ultimately this ended up as another match in which they failed to score.
“I’m disappointed because I thought the performance like the other night was deserving of something from the game,” said Mcinnes.
“Niall Mcginn’s delivery was brilliant and with the amount of ball we put into the box we should be scoring.”