Europa League - Round of 32 - 1st Leg
CelticCeltic0ValenciaValencia2

Europa League: Celtic 0-2 Valencia - hosts easily beaten in first leg

By Tom EnglishBBC Scotland at Celtic Park
Valencia's Denis Cheryshev (centre) celebrates his opener with his team mates
Valencia's Denis Cheryshev (centre) scored the first and set-up the second

Celtic have a mountain to climb to salvage their Europa League dream after Valencia coasted to victory in Glasgow.

In a below-par performance the Scottish champions rarely troubled their visitors in the last 32 first leg.

Ruben Sobrino beat the offside trap and fed Denis Cheryshev, who had an easy finish to give them the lead.

The two then switched roles, Cheryshev's cross inch-perfect for Sobrino to knock in the second.

It leaves Celtic with it all to do in the second leg at the Mestalla stadium next week in their bid to reach the last 16.

Celtic pay for their blunders

Celtic might have a dazzling pre-match light show, but they were outshone to a massive degree by the Spaniards. Even with four important players nursing injuries at home, they had way too much for a Celtic team that suffered an epidemic of misplaced passes, some while under pressure but many while under none at all.

Save for a bright beginning, when Callum McGregor forced a save from Neto, this was straightforward for the visitors who would have gone ahead a whole lot earlier than they did had it not been for a terrific Scott Bain save from a Daniel Wass header.

Any hope that Celtic had of making a tie of it against the team lying eighth in La Liga was compromised by their woeful inability to hold on to the ball. Every last one of them were at it.

Good possession gifted to Valencia. Momentum killed stone dead. A total concession of control to the Spaniards who had Daniel Parejo bossing things in the middle of the park.

Valencia would eventually make Celtic pay for their blunders. When Oliver Burke fired a heavy pass to McGregor, the midfielder couldn't keep it and when the ball broke loose, Valencia struck out.

Parejo played it in behind the Celtic defence to Sobrino. The home crowd - and half the home team - screamed offside, but he wasn't. Emilio Izaguirre played him on. Sobrino ran on, drew Bain and played it right to Cheryshev and the Russian tapped it in. All too simple.

There was some good fortune for Celtic at the break when Parejo failed to make it back out for the second half - the former Arsenal man Francis Coquelin replaced him. Not that it mattered. Within four minutes of the restart, Valencia doubled their lead and again it was a ruinously easy goal from Celtic's perspective.

Wass played it down the left to Cheryshev who put in a lovely cross which was put away with ease by Sobrino. The fact that the striker was alone in Celtic's six-yard box at the time told you much about the dozy defending that was going on back there.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers shows the strain as his team are beaten by Valencia
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers shows the strain as his team are beaten by Valencia

It could have been three just two minutes later when Cristiano Piccini, a Celtic target last summer, cut in from the right and forced a save from Bain.

Two goals behind at home, Celtic were now in the precise situation that Barcelona found themselves at Camp Nou when Valencia went there earlier in the month. Barca banked on Lionel Messi to dig them out of a hole, which he did with two goals.

Brendan Rodgers turned to Odsonne Edouard and Timothy Weah who came on for Ryan Christie and Scott Sinclair. No Messiesque act of escapology ensued. Celtic got more of the ball, but Valencia never looked in any trouble, never got unduly bothered by what Celtic threw at them. Neto in the Valencia goal was idle throughout Celtic's huff and puff.

'Celtic need footballing miracle'

The Spaniards managed the game to the end of their routine night in Glasgow.

With Celtic's away record you could say Valencia didn't just win a match, but a tie.

It would take the most remarkable away performance from Rodgers' team next week to make a fight of it, the kind of away performance that is previously unseen from them.

After this non-event they need some kind of footballing miracle in Spain.

Line-ups

Celtic

Formation 4-2-3-1

  • 29Bain
  • 2ToljanBooked at 88mins
  • 20Boyata
  • 5Simunovic
  • 3Izaguirre
  • 42McGregor
  • 8Brown
  • 49Forrest
  • 17ChristieSubstituted forEdouardat 59'minutes
  • 11SinclairSubstituted forWeahat 59'minutes
  • 25BurkeBooked at 81mins

Substitutes

  • 1Gordon
  • 15Hayes
  • 22Edouard
  • 23Lustig
  • 30Weah
  • 35Ajer
  • 73Johnston

Valencia

Formation 4-4-2

  • 13Neto
  • 21PicciniSubstituted forGameiroat 78'minutes
  • 24Garay
  • 12Diakhaby
  • 15Latorre Grueso
  • 8Soler
  • 10ParejoSubstituted forCoquelinat 45'minutes
  • 6KondogbiaBooked at 82mins
  • 18Wass
  • 23Sobrino
  • 11CheryshevSubstituted forGonçalo Guedesat 64'minutes

Substitutes

  • 1Doménech
  • 7Gonçalo Guedes
  • 9Gameiro
  • 16Lee Kang-in
  • 17Coquelin
  • 20F Torres
  • 32Centelles
Referee:
Ovidiu Hategan
Attendance:
57,430

Match Stats

Home TeamCelticAway TeamValencia
Possession
Home64%
Away36%
Shots
Home5
Away8
Shots on Target
Home2
Away5
Corners
Home2
Away7
Fouls
Home12
Away5

Live Text

  1. Post update

    Match ends, Celtic 0, Valencia 2.

  2. Full Time

    Second Half ends, Celtic 0, Valencia 2.

  3. Post update

    Corner, Valencia. Conceded by Scott Brown.

  4. Booking

    Jeremy Toljan (Celtic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.

  5. Post update

    Foul by Jeremy Toljan (Celtic).

  6. Post update

    Gonçalo Guedes (Valencia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  7. Post update

    Hand ball by Oliver Burke (Celtic).

  8. Post update

    Corner, Valencia. Conceded by Emilio Izaguirre.

  9. Booking

    Geoffrey Kondogbia (Valencia) is shown the yellow card.

  10. Booking

    Oliver Burke (Celtic) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.

  11. Post update

    Foul by Oliver Burke (Celtic).

  12. Post update

    Ezequiel Garay (Valencia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  13. Post update

    Attempt missed. Kevin Gameiro (Valencia) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Gonçalo Guedes with a cross following a corner.

  14. Post update

    Corner, Valencia. Conceded by Dedryck Boyata.

  15. Post update

    Corner, Valencia. Conceded by Jeremy Toljan.

  16. Substitution

    Substitution, Valencia. Kevin Gameiro replaces Cristiano Piccini because of an injury.

  17. Post update

    Attempt blocked. Odsonne Edouard (Celtic) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Scott Brown.

  18. Post update

    Attempt missed. Carlos Soler (Valencia) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right following a corner.

  19. Post update

    Corner, Valencia. Conceded by Scott Brown.

  20. Post update

    Foul by Jeremy Toljan (Celtic).

As It Stood

A

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1B Leverkusen6411169713
2Zürich631276110
3AEK Larnaca6123612-65
4Ludogorets604257-24

B

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1RB Salzburg66001761118
2Celtic630368-29
3RB Leipzig62139817
4Rosenborg6015414-101

C

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Zenit St Petersburg632165111
2Slavia Prague631243110
3Bordeaux62136607
4FC Copenhagen612335-25

D

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Dinamo Zagreb6420113814
2Fenerbahçe62227708
3Spartak Trnava621347-37
4Anderlecht603327-53

E

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Arsenal65101221016
2Sporting64111331013
3Vorskla Poltava6105413-93
4FK Qarabag6105213-113

F

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Real Betis633072512
2Olympiakos6312116510
3AC Milan6312129310
4F91 Dudelange6015316-131

G

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Villarreal6240125710
2Rapid Vienna631269-310
3Rangers61328806
4Spartak Moscow6123812-45

H

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Frankfurt66001751218
2Lazio6303911-29
3Apollon Limassol6213101007
4Marseille6015616-101

I

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1KRC Genk6321148611
2Malmö FF62317619
3Besiktas6213911-27
4Sarpsborg 086123813-55

J

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Sevilla64021861212
2FK Krasnodar640288012
3Standard Liege631279-210
4Akhisarspor6015414-101

K

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Dynamo Kyiv6321107311
2Rennes630378-19
3FC Astana62227708
4FK Jablonec612368-25

L

TeamPWDLFAGDPts
1Chelsea6510123916
2BATE Borisov63039909
3MOL Vidi621357-27
4PAOK Salonika6105512-73
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