Celtic Dominates Dundee United with 4-0 Victory

Celtic’s ruthless streak shows no sign of easing. On a night when Dundee United hit the woodwork five times, the holders barely flinched and still walked out of Tannadice with another 4-0 scoreline, a place in the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals and a fresh warning fired ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League play-off.

Martin O’Neill’s side didn’t just win. They repeated the punishment from the league meeting, handed the hosts a second straight 4-0 doing and did it with a swagger that suggests this squad is beginning to harden at exactly the right time.

Player Ratings

Here’s how the Celtic players rated after another demolition job in Tayside.

Viljami Sinisalo – 7

Another clean sheet for the Finland keeper, his second in three games, but this one came with a sizeable slice of good fortune. Dundee United rattled his posts and bar five times and will be haunted by how they failed to score. Sinisalo, though, will only see the zero against his name. Safe with his handling, less convincing with the ball at his feet, his distribution still needs work.

Colby Donovan – 7

Thrown in again with Alistair Johnston injured, the 19-year-old looks like he’ll be asked to handle the right-back role in Wednesday’s Champions League showdown too. He didn’t shrink from it here. Strong in the tackle, eager to get forward and offer width. The surprise was that third-choice Anthony Ralston didn’t even make the bench, underlining the trust being placed in the teenager.

Cameron Carter-Vickers – 7

The American is edging back towards his dominant best after that brutal Achilles injury. He still looks half a yard short in pure recovery pace in one-on-one situations, but in the air he remains a wall. Celtic’s defence has tightened noticeably since his return and it’s no coincidence. Took Celtic’s only booking of the night as he set the tone physically.

Auston Trusty – 7

Broke the deadlock with a superb glancing header from a corner, steering the ball into the far corner with real conviction. The USA World Cup defender looks increasingly comfortable alongside Carter-Vickers and that partnership already feels like O’Neill’s first-choice pairing. Trusty reads the game well and his presence at set-plays is a constant threat.

Liam Scales – 7

Back after a two-game league ban, the Irishman was asked to fill in at left-back with Kieran Tierney wrapped in cotton wool for LASK. Defensively sound, positionally disciplined, but he doesn’t offer Tierney’s thrust or crossing threat in the final third. A useful, versatile option, yet this performance underlined Celtic’s need for a more natural attacking deputy on that flank.

Callum McGregor – 7

So much for the claims his legs had gone. At 33, the captain still orchestrates everything. He dictated the tempo, took the ball in tight areas, and kept Celtic ticking with his usual calm authority. One lung-bursting surge into the box almost brought a goal for Kasper Hogh and summed up his enduring engine. Rarely wasted a touch.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – 7

On his 33rd birthday he finally got his first start of the season and used it to remind everyone of his quality. The technique is still there. The former Liverpool and Arsenal midfielder clipped passes into space, threaded balls between United’s lines and opened them up with his vision. He faded after the break as the legs tired, but there’s clearly still a role for him in this squad.

Benjamin Nygren – 9

Celtic’s new numbers machine. Three games, three goals, three assists. Nygren is in outrageous early-season form. His corner set up Trusty’s opener, he then slipped in Sebastian Tounekti for the third before thundering home from 18 yards to finish the scoring. Intelligent movement, sharp touches, and end product in every outing. A clear man of the match.

Camilo Duran – 8

A £6million bargain, by the looks of it. Duran prefers playing through the middle but has been just as devastating off the right. He pounced quickest on a loose ball in the box to grab his first Celtic goal minutes after Trusty’s opener, with the ball appearing to brush Hogh’s hand on the way. His relentless running and pressing suffocated United’s back line. A genuine find.

Kasper Hogh – 7

No repeat of his stunning hat-trick at Kilmarnock, but the Dane still made life miserable for United’s defence. Constantly on the move, always available for the out ball, and never stopped working. He won the tussle that led to Duran’s strike and then held the ball up brilliantly before Nygren fed Tounekti for the third. Even without scoring, he influenced the game.

Sebastian Tounekti – 8

A different player from the one who drifted through last season. Given a first start and grabbed it with both hands. His goal was a beauty: twisting United defenders inside out on the break before squeezing his finish through two bodies and into the far corner. Later returned the favour by supplying Nygren for the fourth. Direct, dangerous and electric all evening. With Yang out, he has kicked the door open.

Subs

• Mika Baur – 5 The new arrival immediately drew comparisons to Reo Hatate with his style. Energetic, always on the move, looking to play forward. A brief cameo, but he didn’t hide.
• Dane Murray – 4 Another taste of first-team action for the academy centre-back. Replaced Trusty and slotted in without fuss as Celtic cruised through the closing stages.
• Luke McCowan – 4 The former Dundee favourite, a scorer off the bench at Rugby Park, was introduced again, this time in place of standout Nygren. Couldn’t add to the tally but kept the tempo up.
• James Forrest – 4 On for Hogh, the evergreen winger shifted Duran into the central role and hugged the touchline, using his experience to stretch a tiring United defence.
• Haissem Hassan – 3 Barely featured in pre-season and it showed in his sharpness, but his late introduction for Tounekti still drew a big roar. He’ll need minutes to catch up.

Celtic leave Tannadice with another statement win, their forwards flying and their defence tightening around Carter-Vickers and Trusty. With a Champions League play-off looming, the real question now is whether anyone can slow this momentum.