Celtic dish out Hibs reality check as improving striker takes centre stage after Kyogo Furuhashi benching

How a 4-0 win over Hibs unfolded for the defending champions at Celtic Park

Celtic's Oh Hyeon-gyu celebrates after scoring his second to make it 4-0 over Hibs. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

Celtic’s dismantling of Hibs served as both reminder and reality check, depending on your side of the fence.

For the Scottish champions, their 4-1 home thumping of one of only two Premiership opponents to avoid defeat against them across the first round of fixtures, demonstrated that their reliance on Kyogo Furuhashi may not need be as pronounced as in recent seasons. Brendan Rodgers chose to give the club’s goalscoring talisman a breather on the bench. That meant only a second league start of the season for Oh Hyeon-gyu. On a night when the Irishman handed midfielder Tomoki Iwata his first, and Mikey Johnston a place in a Celtic XI as he hadn’t known since January 2022.

The fast-improving Oh vindicated Rodgers’ trust in him with a double. The Korean striker’s alertness snared him the night’s opener only five minutes in. And by the time he had exhibited real strength to double his tally with a 55th minute second that made it 4-0, the fear for Hibs was that they were in for an even greater mauling in Glasgow than when Nick Montgomery opened up to allow Rangers to run through them for that scoreline six weeks ago.

That would have been rough on the Easter Road side who shuttled the ball with poise in the first period…even as they were picked off by a Celtic team that seemed on a mission to avoid a singeing of ears by their manager. As Rodgers had felt compelled to do as they were sluggish ahead of a stirring second half in their 3-1 win over St Johnstone on Sunday.

Yet, the bottom line for Montgomery is that while he has been able to stablise the Easter Road side – on a run of three wins and unbeaten in their past six league games heading to Glasgow’s east end – they can prove no less fodder for the title rivals than any other in the top flight. Their evening was assured to be a long one when a Luis Palma outswinging corner was clipped towards goal by Cameron Carter-Vickers, and grazed past David Marshall by a lurking, and well-positioned Oh.

The visitors goal then survived a few scares before Palma’s delivery from the wide areas – menacing throughout – was matched by Matt O’Riley’s magnetism for finding the net 36 minutes in. A gloriously whipped cross allowing the midfielder to stretch and heave a header into the far corner for his eighth goal of the campaign – putting him on the same mark as Furuhashi. VAR underpinned Celtic making it 3-0 shortly after the break with the official manning it, Gavin Duncan, instructing referee John Beaton to have a look at Lewis Stevenson catching the standing leg of Alistair Johnston with his boot, a contact that looked a penalty in real-time. Beaton agreed with a second look and Palma, dispensing with the shuddery run-up of his previous two spot-kicks – the most recent ending in a save by Laim Kelly in the 1-1 draw with Motherwell a fortnight ago – slammed in with conviction.

That facet was to the fore as Oh chased a ball down the left channel by a Callum McGregor deployed in a more advanced role. Shouldering off Will Fish, the striker darted forward and slotted away, despite a touch from Marshall. Celtic eased up then with a raft of substitutions, Hibs able to stem the goal flow with substitute Christian Dodge turning in an Elle Youan cross from the left in the 72nd minute. Consolation would be generous, better than nothing more apt.