The football traced a magnificent arc through midair!
Johansen held off Švidga in the central area, slammed his feet into the turf, and leaped!
Unfortunately, under Švidga's pressure, his header was hit too straight and was safely gathered by Vitkauskas.
Vitkauskas quickly got to his feet and launched a powerful clearance with his right foot, aiming straight for Xia Han!
He chose to punt it long for Xia Han! Boyata instantly closed down, pressing Xia Han as he tried to control the ball.
Facing the dropping ball, Xia Han did not bother to trap it. Instead, he nudged it forward, exploded with pace, and burst past Boyata like lightning! Watching the rapid Xia Han, van Dijk felt a sudden jolt of alarm; keeping his eyes locked on the advancing attacker, he retreated step by step.
Xia Han tried to use his explosive speed to blow right past van Dijk, only to find it incredibly difficult to break through a defender who kept such a rhythmic, retreating stance.
Under these circumstances, Xia Han could not find a clean shooting angle.
Even during his time at Celtic, van Dijk already possessed all the traits of an elite center-back.
Time waits for no one; if he dawdled any longer, Celtic's recovering defenders would completely suffocate this chance.
Xia Han decisively cut inside!
A rapid sequence of cuts! A fierce strike! The ball flashed just past the goalpost!
By a hair's breadth!
It was a goal kick for Celtic.
Goalkeeper Gordon took the goal kick long, and the towering Bitton won the first ball once again, nodding it down to Forrest.
Faced with Žalgiris's midfield block, Forrest played a one-two with Johansen, threading the ball through the gap between Lukša and Pilibaitis.
"Watch out! Cover! Cover!"
Dambrauskas stared intensely at Johansen with a stern expression.
Armstrong's rapid surge dragged Kijanskas away, and Johansen lifted his head to survey the pitch.
Faced with Švidga's challenge, Johansen nonchalantly chipped the ball upward, dropping a shoulder fake to the left.
The exact microsecond Švidga was thrown off balance!
Johansen accelerated, bursting past from the right!
He calmly locked eyes with the recovering Kendysh!
Without a hint of hesitation, Johansen stroked the ball with his left foot, sliding a diagonal through-ball!
The instant Griffiths surged forward to receive the ball, Celtic Park erupted with a tsunami-like roar, as if everyone was already certain the ball was in the back of the net!
Vitkauskas rushed off his line, spreading himself into a "K" shape—a posture designed to maximize a goalkeeper's blocking surface!
Griffiths was not known for his dribbling; facing Vitkauskas's decisive charge, his choice was simple.
He took a simple touch across after receiving the ball.
Then, he unleashed a ferocious shot! The ball hurtled forward like an arrow released from a bowstring!
It rocketed straight into the top right corner of the net! Vitkauskas was still frozen in his rushing stance.
He turned his head to look—the ball had already billowed the netting! 1-0!!!
Celtic drew first blood! They took the lead! Griffiths sprinted wildly in front of the stands to celebrate, pumping his fists and triggering another wave of deafening roars!
"That blistering shot! A gorgeous goal!"
"That was truly a brilliantly struck ball!"
"Celtic take the lead! This is the home-court advantage for you! Amidst the deafening cheers of the fans, the Žalgiris players were inevitably affected!"
"Johansen's brilliant escape engineered this goal! A masterclass of an assist! Griffiths still possesses remarkable composure when converting chances!"
"Let's wait and see how Žalgiris responds!"
—[The gap in quality! I said Celtic would score at least three!]
—[Don't rush! It's not time for them to fully exert themselves yet!]
—[Xia Han really ought to leave! No matter how brilliantly one person plays, they can't overcome weak teammates! Football is a team sport played by eleven people!]
—[Look on the bright side, maybe Xia Han is just getting a head start on adapting to the Chinese National Football Team!]
The match resumed, with Celtic's relentless high press leaving Žalgiris gasping for air.
Coupled with the continuous jeering from the stands, Žalgiris faced a severe test.
In the twenty-first minute of the match, following a sequence of crisp passing, Celtic penetrated deep into the vicinity of the Žalgiris penalty area.
Johansen drifted out to the left flank and delivered a high-quality, low-driven cross! The ball flashed right across the face of the goal!
Griffiths, having sprinted in at the back post, slid in for a shot but miscued! The ball rolled out over the end line!
Three minutes later, Celtic struck back! Armstrong received a pass from Forrest just outside the edge of the box and teed himself up for a long-range blast! Kendysh threw his body in the line of fire, blocking Armstrong's thunderous effort!
Celtic won a corner kick! Johansen stepped up to take it! van Dijk, Boyata, and Bitton stood tall inside the penalty area!
"Oh! Armstrong's long shot is cleared by Kendysh! Celtic earn a corner kick!"
"Celtic's set-piece capability is quite impressive! Let's see if anything comes of this corner!"
Boyata made a subtle darting run, moving toward the near post.
Kendysh immediately tracked him stride for stride!
By the corner flag, Johansen raised a hand to signal!
He struck the ball with his left foot, sending it on an in-swinging trajectory straight toward the back post!
Bitton dominated Kijanskas at the back post, leaping high into the air! At one meter ninety-five, he soared above everyone to reach the ball first!
A thunderous header with tremendous authority!
A close-range downward hammer of a header!
Vitkauskas could do nothing at all, standing rooted to the spot as he flailed his hands in vain!
Celtic Park erupted with a massive roar!
"It's in! Johansen delivers it to the back post! Bitton smashes it home with a towering header!"
"Celtic 2-0 Žalgiris!!!"
A beaming Bitton grabbed his head in sheer joy and ran over to Johansen to celebrate together!
On the touchline, Celtic manager Deila looked flushed, practically ready to drop and do a few push-ups on the spot.
"Smother their ensuing fierce counterattacks! Let's carry this two-goal cushion into halftime!"
Deila shouted at the top of his lungs to remind his players on the pitch, and Celtic's overall defensive block retreated from its high press.
Dambrauskas marshaeld his team to push forward, urging his players to press with maximum aggression!
Although Žalgiris stepped up their pressing, Celtic deliberately slowed the tempo, causing the overall match to drift into a somewhat cagey phase.
In the fortieth minute of the match.
Another attacking opportunity fell to Celtic.
Armstrong's relentless surging throughout the first half had thoroughly tormented Lukša, who was tasked with marking him.
However, this time was different. Armstrong shifted the angle, bypassed Lukša, and prepared to knock it past him for an explosive run—only for Xia Han to materialize right in the space behind Armstrong's breakthrough.
Faced with Armstrong's body feint, Xia Han kept his center of gravity low and refused to bite.
Seizing the precise moment, he intercepted the ball!
Having won back possession, he played a quick pass to the nearby Pilibaitis.
Then, he immediately burst forward on a surging run!
Brown and Bitton had grown somewhat complacent after taking the lead.
Amidst Žalgiris's rapid ball movement, the pass sliced straight through Celtic's defensive line!