Celtic could be crowned William Hill Premiership champions on Sunday following a 5-1 hammering of Kilmarnock at Parkhead.
Boss Brendan Rodgers demanded better from his players following the shock 1-0 defeat at bottom side St Johnstone last weekend and with only 11 minutes played his side were two goals to the good through a terrific strike from midfielder Reo Hatate and a tap-in by striker Daizen Maeda.
The hungry Hoops soon added further goals from defender Cameron Carter-Vickers and Hatate again before Danny Armstrong pulled a goal back for the rocked Rugby Park outfit just before the half-hour mark.
But a last-gasp strike by substitute Anthony Ralston at the end of a less dynamic second half restored Celtic’s four-goal margin.
Celtic finished the afternoon 16 points ahead of Rangers who play Aberdeen at Pittodrie tomorrow.
Should the Ibrox side lose, they will have only 15 points left to play for, which means Celtic will be crowned champions for the fourth successive season and the 13th time in 14 years, although there is little doubt that the Parkhead side will eventually get there in the end.
Derek McInnes’ side were simply blown away in the first half and will have to fight in their final five fixtures to stay clear of relegation.
Rodgers promised changes next summer in the wake of the McDiarmid Park performance which prevented a possible title-winning game against Kilmarnock.
The Northern Irishman made more immediate alterations to his side with veteran winger James Forrest, defenders Liam Scales and Greg Taylor and attacker Adam Idah back in the side.
Celtic came flying out and the startled visitors soon found themselves a goal down.
Japan midfielder Hatate played a bounce pass with Taylor and from 25 yards curled an unstoppable shot past Killie goalkeeper Kieran O’Hara.
Kilmarnock were still coming to terms with the early set-back when Hoops midfielder Arne Engels played in overlapping right-back Alistair Johnston, whose cross got past defender Lewis Mayo on the line and fell to Maeda and he simply tapped into an empty net for his 31st Celtic goal this season.
O’Hara saved a Scales thunderbolt from distance before fellow centre-back Carter-Vickers, in acres of space in the 21st minute, powered in a drive from 25 yards high past O’Hara.
Johnston set up Hatate for his second with another cut-back from the right four minutes later, the Hoops playmaker taking a touch before sliding the ball into the corner from 12 yards with the Kilmarnock defence all over the place.
The shell-shocked visitors reduced the deficit when Armstrong turned on to his left foot on the right side and flighted the ball high over Hoops keeper Viljami Sinisalo, albeit it could have been more of a cross than a shot.
Back came Celtic and when O’Hara blocked a close-range shot from Hatate, Maeda was on hand to slam the ball into the net from eight yards but this time the VAR ruled offside.
There was a lull in the game before Engels clipped the bar in the 77th minute and then deep into three minutes of added time, Ralston, on for Johnston, scored with an angled-drive with Celtic now on the brink of yet another title success.
Mikel Arteta said he is ready to give his life to deliver a trophy for Arsenal after he apologised to the club’s fans for ending the season empty handed.Declan Rice’s second-half strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 win over Newcastle and confirmed their place in the Champions League.However, the Gunners failed to launch a serious title challenge to Liverpool this season, and they are set to ...
Jamie Vardy reflected on an “amazing” and “rollercoaster” career with Leicester after scoring a landmark 200th goal in his 500th and final appearance for the Foxes.The 38-year-old former England striker reached the goal milestone in the 28th minute of Leicester’s home match with Ipswich when he latched on to James Justin’s through ball and expertly slipped it be...
Mikel Arteta apologised to Arsenal supporters for failing to deliver on his dream of ending the club’s two-decade wait for a Premier League title.Declan Rice’s second-half strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 win over Newcastle and confirmed their place in the Champions League next season.However, the Gunners failed to launch a serious challenge to Liverpool this season and are set to finish ...
Interim boss Liam Fox welled up with tears as he reflected on his “pride” at leading Hearts to four straight wins before departing his boyhood club as they prepare to confirm Derek McInnes as their new manager on Monday.With McInnes set to bring his own backroom staff with him from Kilmarnock, it was announced on Saturday that Fox – a childhood Jambo who started both his playing ...
Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor heaped praise on her side’s new celebrity investors after multi-millionaire entrepreneur Alexis Ohanian and his wife, tennis great Serena Williams, flew over for their FA Cup final triumph at Wembley.Sandy Baltimore scored a brace either side of a Catarina Macario goal as Chelsea sealed an unbeaten domestic treble with a 3-0 victory over Manchester United in fron...
Declan Rice’s second-half strike fired Arsenal to a 1-0 win against Newcastle at the Emirates and a place in next season’s Champions League.Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya kept his side in the match with a string of fine saves prior to the interval before Rice delivered from range with 55 minutes gone.Arsenal’s victory moves them five points clear of third-placed Newcastle with jus...
Marco Silva says Harry Wilson will “want to play Brentford every week” after he stung the Bees for a second time this season with the winner in Fulham’s 3-2 west London derby victory at the Gtech Community Stadium.Wilson, who had his contract extended until next summer this week and also scored a stoppage-time double in Fulham’s 2-1 win over Brentford in November, replicate...
Tony Docherty thanked Lyall Cameron for an outstanding career at Dundee after the midfielder signed off in style with a double in victory over St Johnstone.Cameron, who penned a pre-contract with Rangers in February, inspired a 2-0 win that eased the Dark Blues away from the relegation play-off place.The 22-year-old netted after 28 minutes and rounded off a man-of-the-match display with a stoppage...
Nuno Espirito Santo and his Nottingham Forest players dedicated the 2-1 win over West Ham which kept their Champions League hopes alive to stricken team-mate Taiwo Awoniyi.Striker Awoniyi is recovering from emergency abdominal surgery, having been placed in an induced coma, after colliding with a goalpost in last weekend’s Premier League home draw against Leicester.The 27-year-old revealed o...
Michael Wimmer says he is delighted with how Motherwell have ended the season after wrapping up their William Hill Premiership campaign with a 1-1 draw at Ross County.The Steelmen trailed to a Ronan Hale goal on the half-hour mark but improved drastically in the second half and dominated the game in Dingwall.That pressure eventually told, with Moses Ebiye heading in an equaliser with seven minutes...
- 1 Richie Wellens hails Leyton Orient’s ‘outstanding’ victory over Stockport
- 2 We will see – no Unai Emery assurances over future of tearful Emiliano Martinez
- 3 Arsenal offer £135k deal to seduce target
- 4 Leyton Orient book Wembley date by beating Stockport on penalties
- 5 Liverpool cleared to complete signing
- 6 Brendan Rodgers hits out at ‘needless challenge’ on Reo Hatate
- 7 Mikel Arteta ready to give his life to deliver silverware for Arsenal
- 8 David Gray thanks Hibernian board for showing faith in him after securing third
- 9 Airdrieonians earn first-leg lead over Cove in play-offs
- 10 Chelsea beat Manchester United in FA Cup final to seal domestic treble