Celtic’s impressive start to the season continued apace with a comprehensive 3-0 William Hill Premiership win over St Mirren in Paisley.
Skipper Callum McGregor fired the visitors ahead inside three minutes and fellow midfielder Reo Hatate added a second in the 33rd minute as Celtic ignored the inclement weather to take control.
Hoops defender Alistair Johnston swept in a third in the 71st minute to complete a convincing victory for the champions who have indicated their intentions early.
Brendan Rodgers’ side have won all four games this season – scoring 12 and conceding just one – and should go into next Sunday’s Old Firm game against Rangers at Parkhead with supreme confidence.
There was no doubting the effort put in by Stephen Robinson’s men but they were well short and have now lost four games in a row.
Saints were knocked out of the Premier Sports Cup last week by Dundee United so Robinson took action, with Killian Phillips making his debut after joining on loan from Crystal Palace.
Jonah Ayunga, Jaden Brown, captain Mark O’Hara and Richard Taylor also started with Roland Idowu, Mikael Mandron, Oisin Smyth, Scott Tanser and Fraser Taylor dropping to the bench.
On a wet and windy day in Paisley, striker Adam Idah and midfielder Paulo Bernardo came in to the Celtic side with Rodgers confirming missing Matt O’Riley is on his way to Brighton, while Nicolas Kuhn had to settle for a place among the substitutes.
There were less than three minutes played when McGregor picked up a pass from James Forrest outside the box and lasered a shot low past Buddies keeper Ellery Balcombe for his second goal of the season, equalling last season’s tally.
In the 14th minute Balcombe made saves from Hatate and then Idah following a fine move from the Parkhead side.
Balcombe used his foot to block the next effort from Idah after he had been sent clear by Bernardo.
There was a VAR check for a Celtic penalty on the half-hour mark when Daizen Maeda went down in the box following a challenge by the already-booked Alex Gogic, but play continued.
Celtic soon doubled their lead though, Johnston’s lofted cross to the back post being headed back by Maeda for Hatate to drill a shot low in off the far post.
There was another VAR check when Maeda when down in the area following a tackle by Shaun Rooney, but again no penalty was awarded.
Robinson brought on Mandron and Idowu for Gogic and Ayunga at the start of the second half but Celtic retained the upper hand and continued to threaten.
Kyogo Furuhashi and Kuhn replaced Idah and Forrest just before the hour mark and eight minutes later Balcombe thwarted Furuhashi after the Japan striker raced on to Johnston’s defence-splitting pass.
But it simply delayed what looked like the inevitable.
Moments later, Kuhn drifted into the St Mirren box from the right and set up Johnston to knock the ball high into the net from 10 yards to make it 3-0.
There was also time for 18-year-old Francis Turley to make a late debut for Hatate as Celtic, who showed they remain a potent force even without the services of influential Denmark midfielder O’Riley.
Interim boss Stephen Frail expects Motherwell to appoint a new manager next week and admits their first job will be to lift the players’ confidence after a 3-0 mauling at home to Ross County.A double from Ronan Hale and Connor Randall’s last-minute strike secured an impressive victory for the Staggies at Fir Park.Defeat sees the Steelmen drop into the bottom half of the Premiership tab...
Mark Hughes heaped praise on goalkeeper Gabe Breeze after Carlisle picked up a vital point in the League Two relegation battle with a goalless draw against in-form Colchester at Brunton Park.Breeze made two excellent saves from Lyle Taylor as the Cumbrians ended a four-game losing run and the former Man City boss was astounded by the 21-year-old’s performance.He said: “The game had som...
Chesterfield boss Paul Cook launched a scathing attack on his play-off hopefuls after they surrendered an early lead to lose 3-1 at Sky Bet League Two table-toppers Walsall.The Spireites enjoyed a rapid start when Jamie Grimes’ eighth-minute header put them ahead against a wobbling Walsall side, who were winless in five matches with the chasing pack closing in.However, Bim Pepple and Dylan D...
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has allayed fears of an injury scare to top scorer Erling Haaland ahead of next week’s Champions League trip to Real Madrid.Haaland went down clutching his leg in the latter stages of the champions’ 4-0 Premier League thrashing of Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday and was immediately substituted.Losing the Norwegian would be a major blow to ...
Rotherham manager Steve Evans described Thomas Parsons’ performance as “atrocious” after the referee awarded a stoppage-time penalty from which Reading snatched a 2-1 victory in League One.Reading had led 1-0 at half-time through top scorer Harvey Knibbs but Sam Nombe levelled for Rotherham from a spot-kick in the 57th minute.With the game heading for a draw, Parsons adjudged Mil...
Michael Flynn believes his team can make a charge towards the League Two play-offs places after watching them come from 2-0 down to beat Barrow 3-2 at home.Matty Taylor scored twice before fellow substitute Ashley Hay hit the winner as the Robins continued their perfect home record in 2025.Cheltenham climbed to 13th in the table and sit eight points off seventh-placed Crewe with two games in hand....
Birmingham manager Chris Davies praised Jay Stansfield’s work ethic after he lit up St Andrew’s with the only goal of a 1-0 win to sink play-off chasing Charlton.Stansfield’s 23rd-minute strike stretched City’s lead to nine points ahead of second-placed Wycombe, with Blues boasting a game in hand.Victory was City’s 30th in all competitions as they extended their unbea...
Andoni Iraola refused to get carried away after Bournemouth fans were left dreaming of a potential Champions League adventure following a first league double over south-coast rivals Southampton.Travelling Cherries fans chanted of playing in European football’s premier competition next season after their side soared to fifth spot in the Premier League table thanks to a deserved 3-1 success at...
Norwich head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup praised his side for fighting back to draw 1-1 at Hull after he demanded “I want to see my football team back”.The Norwich boss had some tough words for his team as they trailed 1-0 at half-time to the relegation-threatened side, including for Kellen Fisher – but the player then delivered the assist for Josh Sargent’s equaliser.The Un...
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers says Jota has a chance of starting against Bayern Munich after scoring and impressing in a 3-0 victory over Dundee United.Jota earned the club’s man-of-the-match award after cutting in from the left and curling home from 18 yards to double the lead given to the hosts by another impressive finish from Callum McGregor.The Portuguese winger has now started two gam...
