Super-sub Iheanacho excited after firing Celtic to Scottish summit
Kelechi Iheanacho came off the bench to score a decisive late goal as Celtic defeated Hibernian 2-1 at Easter Road yesterday , sending the Hoops to the top of the
Kelechi Iheanacho came off the bench to score a decisive late goal as Celtic defeated Hibernian 2-1 at Easter Road yesterday , sending the Hoops to the top of the Scottish Premiership .
The Nigeria international striker said afterwards he was simply doing what makes him happy.
"I always feel great to come in and help the team to get the win, so I'm happy today," Iheanacho told Celtic TV. "The whole team is happy, and especially the fans."
The goal, his seventh of the season, moved Martin O'Neill's side level with Hearts at the top of the table and continued a run of match-winning substitute appearances that has made Iheanacho one of Celtic's most important players this term.
He scored at Dens Park last month and bagged two extra-time goals against St Mirren at Hampden to send the Hoops into the Scottish Cup final. Saturday's winner followed a similar pattern — patience, composure, and a clinical finish when it mattered most.
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"In the box you need to be composed but it was a difficult finish, to be fair," Iheanacho admitted. "I wanted to head it at first but I had a second touch to chest it, and then the guys started rushing out and I just had to get it on target and see what happened."
Celtic had dominated large portions of an absorbing afternoon in Edinburgh, particularly after referee David Dickinson upgraded Jamie McGrath's yellow card to red following a foul on Alistair Johnston in the 19th minute, leaving Hibernian to play the majority of the match with 10 men.
Daizen Maeda broke the deadlock four minutes before half-time, tapping home from close range after Johnston's driven cross. VAR overturned an initial offside flag to confirm the goal. But Hibernian levelled deep in first-half stoppage time when Joe Newell prodded home after goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo failed to hold a delivery into the box — a goal that itself survived a VAR review for offside and handball.
Celtic pressed for a winner throughout the second half, and Iheanacho acknowledged that keeping composure against a deep-sitting side was the critical challenge.
"It's really important to stay patient, especially when you're playing against 10 men," he said. "They sit back and wait for you to come, so you need patience to move them from side to side to create spaces, and at the end we got our reward."
With the title race entering its most decisive phase, Iheanacho insisted Celtic's focus remains firmly on the prize ahead.
"We just need to focus on the rest of the games, do the job we need to do, and at the end we'll get the trophy hopefully," he said.
