Kilmarnock 1 - 0 Celtic: How the players rated on each side

Ratings out of ten for every player in Kilmarnock's 1-0 win over Celtic

Celtic's Scott Brown (L) with Kilmarnock's Jordan Jones. Picture: SNS/Alan Harvey

KILMARNOCK

Jamie MacDonald - 6

Surprisingly under-used against a shot-shy Celtic, but saved well from Olivier Ntcham’s free kick late on to ensure Kilmarnock held onto the three points.

Stephen O’Donnell - 7

Most of Celtic’s attack came down his flank but he coped well against Kieran Tierney in the first half and Scott Sinclair in the second.

Kirk Broadfoot - 7

Other than conceding a late free-kick which nearly proved costly, Broadfoot was a solid presence at the heart of the Kilmarnock defence.

Gordon Greer - 8

One of his best performances since joining in the summer, Greer and his centre half partner, Broadfoot, ensured that Celtic rarely got a sniff of the home goal. Easily won the contest with Moussa Dembele.

Greg Taylor - 7

Kept James Forrest quiet in the first half and did his best to support Jordan Jones going forward. The second half proved more of a defensive challenge but coped well against an improved Celtic.

Rory McKenzie - 6

Worked hard throughout to put pressure on Celtic’s back line and helped push Kilmarnock further up the pitch when under pressure.

Gary Dicker - 7

A less showy performance than his midfield colleague, Mulumbu, but was no less effective in denying Celtic space in the middle of the park.

Youssouf Mulumbu - 9

Mulumbu’s quality was evident throughout the game; harrying Celtic relentlessly in possession and providing the platform for the majority of Kilmarnock’s attacks. He became an increasing threat in the final third after Steve Clarke changed tactics and deserved his well-taken goal.

Jordan Jones - 7

Jones was Kilmarnock’s primary threat and, at times, tormented Celtic debutant Jack Hendry with his direct running. His final ball was often disappointing, but made up for it with the assist for Mulumbu’s goal.

Eamon Brophy - 6

Much like McKenzie, contributed plenty of hard work and energy although was largely starved of the ball.

Kris Boyd - 6

Tested Dorus de Vries with a couple of efforts, but struggled to fashion any clear cut openings and was substituted just after the hour.

SUBS

Aaron Tshibola - 7

With Celtic beginning to exert some sustained pressure in the second half, the new signing from Aston Villa helped wrestled momentum back for Kilmarnock.

Lee Erwin - N/A

Came on with the game stretched in the final stages and nearly set up a second Kilmarnock goal.

Stuart Findlay - N/A

Late sub.

CELTIC

Dorus de Vries - 6

An unconvincing performance from De Vries, who poorly parried a Jordan Jones shot in the first half and struggled to pass out from the back. Made a couple of good saves from Mulumbu and Jones in the final stages.

Kristoffer Ajer - 5

Substituted after 35 minutes, having picked up a knock he couldn’t shake off.

Jack Hendry - 5

A difficult debut for the former Dundee player. Competed well in the physical duel with Kris Boyd, but struggled up against the dangerous Jordan Jones. Looked nervous when asked to travel out of defence with the ball.

Dedryck Boyata - N/A

Suffered a groin injury within the first ten minutes and had to be replaced.

James Forrest - 6

An unusually inert performance from one of Celtic’s best performers this season. After a very quiet first half, he began to stretch the Kilmarnock defence with some powerful runs midway through the second period, but he faded again as the clock wound down.

Eboue Kouassi - 5

A largely anonymous performance from the midfielder, who was outclassed by his Kilmarnock counterparts.

Scott Brown - 6

Scott Brown rarely loses individual battles, but he met his match in Mulumbu, who won a number of important 50-50 challenges against the Scotland midfielder.

Kieran Tierney - 6

Tierney showed his versatility once again for Brendan Rodgers, starting on the left flank before an injury crisis forced him into the role of emergency centre half. He had looked Celtic’s best attacking outlet until the formation change.

Charly Musonda - 6

Celtic’s new signing from Chelsea showed flashes of quality but too often his tricks and flicks were deployed far from the Kilmarnock goal, as the home side limited the space for him to operate in. One snap-shot in the second half was as close as he came to scoring a goal on his full debut.

Moussa Dembele - 5

There was nothing at Rugby Park to suggest Dembele is likely to overcome his form slump any time soon. The Frenchman was subdued throughout, finding space in the opposition box difficult to come by as he struggled to impose himself on the game.

Olivier Ntcham - 6

Came closest to scoring for Celtic with a free kick in each half. Saw lots of the ball but struggled to impose himself in an attacking sense.

SUBS

Nir Bitton - 6

An admirable performance blotted by his failure to pick up Mulumbu in the box as Kilmarnock took the lead. He arrived into the fray after the early injury to Boyata and provided much needed composure either side of his inexperienced centre-half partners, but his late mistake proved costly.

Scott Sinclair - 5

In a game with few clear cut opportunities, Sinclair appeared to have been presented one midway through the second half, but he took a bad touch in the home box and the chance disappeared. It summed up an ineffectual appearance from the substitute.

Odsonne Edouard - N/A

Came on late and failed to make a meaningful impression as Celtic chased the game.