Scottish Premier League / Dundee United 2 Celtic 4: Gordon Strachan's aim of making Celtic champions of Scotland again received a significant boost yesterday when they went to the top of the SPL for the first time this season.
They may only lead on goal difference but slowly and surely Strachan is winning a battle for hearts and minds among the club's supporters, who sang his name en masse for the first time during this enthralling encounter.
Goals from John Hartson and Chris Sutton, an own goal from Alan Archibald and a late Stephen Pearson effort earned the victory, taking Celtic's scoring tally to nine in two games. Sutton had earlier headed into his own net to put the home side in front, and Colin Samuel levelled the scores at 2-2 during a remarkable opening half-hour, but the visitors pushed on for a win that takes them above Hearts and 10 points clear of Rangers.
"The variation in our play was magnificent," said Strachan. "And it's actually harder to play like that when you go 1-0 down. But we kept to the team plan, which means we don't just play exciting football when we are two or three goals in front of teams."
Strachan made one change from the side which demolished Motherwell 5-0 last Wednesday, Hartson returning to the fold in place of Craig Beattie. That midweek win had come after Strachan lambasted his players even in victory at Kilmarnock eight days ago, and while standards are on the rise at Parkhead, the visiting support were proclaiming their admiration for Rangers' manager Alex McLeish, who presided over another disappointing result, drawing 1-1 against Inverness Caley Thistle at Ibrox on Saturday.
But the travelling fans were silenced within minutes of the game's opening, when Sutton headed a Barry Robson corner past the stranded Artur Boruc. It would have looked like a perfectly executed goal, had it only been at the right end.
Sutton atoned by performing a cute dummy from a Paul Telfer pass to play in Hartson, who shot underneath Derek Stillie from 12 yards. And the former Chelsea and Blackburn striker capped a remarkable personal half-hour by flicking a Shaun Maloney 20-yard shot past Stillie to put Celtic in front. How much Sutton knew about the goal is open to question, but United's Samuel had his wits about him as he lashed an equaliser past Boruc after a fine run from Mark Wilson.
United had kept Rangers at bay in a scoreless draw a fortnight ago, but their back line also appeared distinctly fragile against the other half of the Old Firm, and a Bobo Balde flick-on dropped past Stillie after coming off the shoulder of Archibald with 13 first-half minutes remaining.
Stillie saved smartly from Hartson's point-blank header within minutes of the second half getting under way, and while United maintained heavy pressure on the Celtic goal area, they were unable to match the heroics of the opening 45 minutes.
Strachan's men sealed the win two minutes from time, when Pearson bundled his first goal of the season past Stillie from three yards. So it is the Celtic support's turn to chant "We shall not be moved" and "There's only one Gordon Strachan." Both thoughts seemed inconceivable after the opening weeks of the season, but on this form, the former verse may be prescient.
Guardian Service
DUNDEE UTD: Stillie, Kenneth, Ritchie, Archibald, Wilson, Canero, Brebner, Kerr, Robson, Samuel, McIntyre (Miller 65). Subs not used: Samson, McInnes, Duff, Dodds, Robertson, Cameron. Goals: Sutton 4 og, Samuel 30.
CELTIC: Boruc, Telfer, Balde, McManus, Camara, Maloney (McGeady 90), Lennon, Petrov, Nakamura, Hartson (Beattie 75), Sutton, Beattie (Pearson 83). Subs not used: Virgo, Agathe, Wallace, Marshall. Booked: McManus. Goals: Hartson 17, Sutton 28, Archibald 32 og, Pearson 88.
Referee: A Freeland (Scotland).
