Celtic vs Kilmarnock

Match summary

Celtic beat Kilmarnock 1-0. Celtic led 1-0 at half-time.

Liam Scales put Celtic ahead from a corner in the 26th minute.

The chances backed that up: Celtic created 2.21 expected goals (xG) from 20 shots to Kilmarnock's 1.60 from 7. Benjamin Nygren had a penalty saved for Celtic.

Celtic secured a narrow Scottish Premiership victory against Kilmarnock on matchday 13, dominating territory and creating the bulk of the opportunities throughout the contest. The hosts registered 20 shots compared to the visitors 7, translating to 5 shots on target against 3. Celtic accumulated an expected goals figure of 2.21 while Kilmarnock posted 1.60. Possession favoured the home side with 59 percent to 41 percent, alongside 534 passes and an 88.0 percent pass accuracy. The match saw a higher disciplinary count for the away team, who received 5 yellow cards and committed 12 fouls, while Celtic were shown 1 yellow card and gave away 7 fouls.

The action began immediately with Tom Lowery testing the defence in the 1st minute before receiving a yellow card in the 9th minute for a foul. Following a VAR review that confirmed the build-up, Mika Baur was involved before Liam Scales broke the deadlock in the 26th minute with a left foot shot to establish a 1-0 half-time score. Kilmarnock accumulated further cautions through Joe Hugill and Cathal McCarthy before the interval. The second half featured multiple substitutions and a flurry of bookings for the visitors. Benjamin Nygren had a penalty saved in the 76th minute following a VAR check for a potential penalty, and Celtic preserved their single-goal advantage until the final whistle.