Celtic are in the League Cup final after a second-half double by substitute Moussa Dembele secured a 4-2 win over Hibs at Hampden. Brendan Rodgers' side had returned chastened from their 3-0 Champions League defeat by Bayern Munich in Germany on Wednesday, but even far from their best they appeared to have the semi-final won by half-time after two goals by right-back Mikael Lustig. Former Celt Anthony Stokes reduced the deficit just before the hour mark from the penalty spot before Dembele came on and restored Celtic's two-goal lead. And although Oliver Shaw made it 3-2 moments after coming off the bench for Neil Lennon's side, the French striker grabbed a late fourth. The result means that Celtic extended their unbeaten domestic run to 60 games to set up a final meeting with either Rangers or Motherwell who play on Sunday.
The opening goal came in the 14th minute after Hibs failed to clear their lines after initially dealing with a Leigh Griffiths free-kick. When Stuart Armstrong's cross from the left was headed on by Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata, Lustig escaped the sleeping Brandon Barker to knock the ball past Ross Laidlaw without any great pace. If Laidlaw looked unconvincing at Lustig's first goal -- and he did with a poor attempt to save -- then the second was a disaster for the former Raith Rovers goalkeeper. This time Hibs captain David Gray allowed the Swedish international to get on the end of a Griffiths corner and from a less than powerful drive the Easter Road keeper allowed the ball to get past him. |
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