Fenway Park was packed more than for the average Red Sox game, jammed with fans repping the Green and White, and they didn't go home disappointed. It was pretty bizarre to see a soccer pitch on the Fenway field, with the Green Monster off to the side, but the product was damned enjoyable and continues to show the increase in the love for soccer here in the States.
Celtic started things with Marc-Antoine Fortune and Paddy McCourt attacking up from, Lukasz Zaluska in net, and Scott Brown and Chalie Mulgrew getting starts after their solid performances against Seattle FC earlier in the tour. There was some excitment back and forth as things got under way, with Celtic splitting the Sporting Lisbon defense a couple of times, but they were never quite able to thread the pass from foot to foot. The Portugal side had a couple of chances as well, in the first half, but shots over the bar aren't close enough to count on the score sheet, and we were nillers after 45.
I'd like to extend a special thank you to You Tube for providing the thrilling second half highlights.
Our beloved long haired Greek Georgios Samaras broke in on the side of the box, and was hauled down to the ground. The crowd knew it, the Sporting players knew it, and the ref placed the ball squarely on the penalty box for Gorgeous George. Has he earned a penalty in every game on this tour? For sure in the Man U and Seattle matches, and now at Fenway. Talk about creating havoc. Well, instead of his usual blast, Samaras gently grounded the ball into the lower right side of the net as the Lisbon keeper dove wildly in the opposite direction, and just like that we had a 1-1 lead in the 72nd. The pro-Celtic crowd went nuts, but so did the offense of Sporting. They started pushing forward like mad, and just 10 minutes from the Hoops' netter, they would draw even. A cross came right to the head of a Lisbon player who sent one off the cross bar and off the finger tips of Zaluska, who fell to the ground after his attempt. Unluckily, the ball went from the cross bar right to the head of Helder Postiga, who easily bashed the ball home with the Celtic keeper laying on the ground. We were even with 8 to go, and you know that means penalties in a friendly on US soil.
After both teams promptly drilled their first five home, Lisbon's Leidson blazed his shot over and opened the door for Celtic's McGowan to finish them off. He promptly put the game winner in the net, and the Sligo Side walked off the pitch with the Fenway Football Challenge Trophy, finishing their North American tour with a 2-2 record. Take that, Boston!
As far as last night's East Coast lineup, I think we played out pretty well.
G- Zaluska has clearly shown us that we can allow the Boruc exit to happen without shedding too many tears. The goal he allowed was one that no keeper could have stopped, just a lucky bounce for Lisbon, really, and I'm confident with him between the wood work.
D- Wilson, Loovens, O'Dea, and Mulgrew did well enough to prevent plenty of situations from turning into chances last night. However, it is pretty clear that Cha Du-Ri will be getting most of he starts in the 4-4-2 set up, rather than Wilson once the season gets underway.
M- Forest, Brown, Ki, and Samaras did all they could to create havoc, and eventually our Super Greek was the one who made the action happen. With the rumors that Aiden McGeady may be poised to make an exit from Celtic, our midfield will look different in the upcoming year. But, I'm looking for Brown, Maloney, Ki, and Joe Ledley (who earned that PK against Man U) to be the impact middies in our 4-4-2 come the SPL season.
F- McCourt got the chance to run with Fortune to start the game, with Paddy and Sheriden coming in as subs. We are blessed with some striking talent in Glasgow, and while Samaras played the mid against Sporting, he'll most likely spend most of his time up front with Fortune or McGowan once the season starts.
It was a fair tour, and while we should have beat the Union to finish 3-1, a .500 record is respectable, especially since we won our final two tests. Now, a huge preseason test is about to get underway. Next Wednesday we have a gigantic battle with SC Braga in a UEFA Champions League qualifying match. It's the first leg of a two leg qualifying test that concludes on 8/4, which will be our final match before the SPL season starts. The Archbishops, beside having a cool nickname, will be our second Portuguese side in as many games, but this one is lightyears more important than our Fenway fight. Braga have a picture of Mary holding a baby Jesus on their logo, and their fans believe that Mary gives them good fortune in every match. Well, I guess Celtic fans will have to start thumbing those rosary beads to turn Mary to our favor.
Hail! Hail!
-- Sent from my Palm Prē
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