A year ago I endured & enjoyed a pulsating night of football in a stadium filled with passion and everything that makes football a magical spectacle across the world. Celtic 2 Lazio 1 at Celtic Park.
That magical feeling of a big European win under the lights returned with interest in a pulsating 90+ minutes of action at Celtic Park.
There was just an extra edge to this match long before a ball was kicked. They say football and politics should not mix, but the vast differences in cultural and social beliefs of both sets of fans ensured the atmosphere stayed electric all night while the gladiators fought for three points on the field.
Celtic could not capitalise on a strong first-half performance, often failing at the final phase of attack. In typical Euro style we fell behind to a sucker-punch counter-attack goal and fine finish from Lazzari. 1-0 down at half-time, the question was could we rise again?
The match swung from end to end as Celtic looked to get back on level terms and Lazio tried to net a second. Fraser Forster saved at close range and the post came to our rescue in a breathless second-half.
When the equaliser came it was fitting – two of our stand-out performers of the season combined as Edouard slipped the ball to Christie to fire over the keeper into the net.
With time running out and the prospect of a draw growing, the star man of the night delivered the wining goal to set the stadium rocking in wild celebration. Christie swung in a corner which was met perfectly by the head of the formidable figure of Christopher Jullien.
The drama continued for five more minutes in injury time, but by that point, I’m not going to lie, I was watching reactions on people’s faces instead of the action on the pitch. That to me is the beauty of football – you love the team but sometimes you just can’t watch.
In that moment when I was watching my feet, I heard that millisecond of silence as 60,000 people took a sharp intake of breath and then let out a cheer followed up by cries of “WHAT A SAVE”. The great wall had returned to ensure our night of celebration was not left in ruin.
An incredible night at Celtic Park capped off with a fantastic win.
