Dundee boss Tony Docherty reacts to Celtic Park thrashing and Bhoys display
Celtic weren’t in the mood to hang about last night as they put seven goals past Dundee in a vintage display under Brendan Rodgers.
Making a dent in the goal difference, the Bhoys also had seven separate scorers on the night, demonstrating their will to fight for the Scottish Premiership title.
Cameron Carter-Vickers, Adam Idah and Matt O’Riley had the game wrapped up inside 22 minutes before Daizen Maeda, Greg Taylor, and Callum McGregor made the floodgates open at Parkhead.
Rodgers’ side went off to a standing ovation while 6-0 up at the interval and returned to dominate the second half. Daniel Kelly then added to the scoreline with a sweetly curled effort to notch his first goal for the club.
Dundee striker Michael Mellon responded late on by firing an impressive volley beyond Joe Hart; however, it was the only minor inconvenience on a fantastic night for Celtic.
This term, all too often, there has been a nervousness that has engulfed the slopes of Parkhead amid some less-than-convincing performances, though anyone who was at the match last night can testify that there was something in the air as the support backed our Bhoys to the hilt.
Everything came together on a cold evening in Glasgow’s east end, and it is now up to Celtic to ensure they can continue their momentum against Heart of Midlothian at Tynecastle on Sunday.
Tony Docherty thinks Celtic were ‘outstanding’ in Dundee rout
Dundee manager Tony Docherty has done a fine job since taking charge at Dens Park, guiding his newly promoted side to sixth place in the league standings against all the odds.
In his assessment of events post-match, the 53-year-old lamented the Dees’ failure to keep Celtic at bay; however, he also offered some glowing praise to the Bhoys, labelling our performance as ‘outstanding’ on the day.
Docherty stated [The Courier]: “There is no defence for the level of defending that contributed to the goals early in the match. There has to be a level of accountability for that. But it’s not something I’ve seen in the group before, so I’m actually a bit shocked at the level of goal we conceded.
“We need to take real ownership and responsibility for that. Not defending crosses, not defending our box properly, getting done with cut-backs and it’s not something I’ve seen before.
“Celtic were outstanding, but we can do more, and we need to take responsibility for that.”
He later added: “Hopefully, it’s a one-off; we caught Celtic on a really good night, and we had a really bad night. There’s no hiding place on a night like that, so it’s important we show resilience and character and make sure we bounce back.”
Tony Docherty’s honesty on Celtic’s display is refreshing
Fair play to Docherty, who has acknowledged his side were up against a rampant Celtic outfit who were determined to prove a point on home soil.
Granted, he will have his frustrations after a bad day at the office, though he has come across in a dignified manner, not for the first time this season.
Whether Dundee manage to finish in the top half is set to determine if Celtic have to face last night’s opposition again; nevertheless, we won’t know the answer to that until mid-April
