FC Astra Giurgiu 1-1 Celtic: Europa League - as it happened!

http://www.theguardian.com/football/live/2014/nov/06/fc-astra-giurgiu-v-celtic-europa-league-live

Version 0 of 1.

7.56pm GMT19:56

So Celtic failed to become the first Scottish team to win in Romania, and in doing so failed to become the first Scottish side to qualify from a European group stage with two rounds remaining.

They should still qualify, though the chances of topping the group are slim. Deila’s side are five points clear of Dinamo Zagreb - with Salzburg and Zagreb still to play.

Thank you for sticking with me - and apologies for the at times vague updates. When you can’t see one side of the pitch it’s slightly tricky.

Now go join my colleague Paul Doyle for Everton v Lille.

7.53pm GMT19:53

Full-time! Astra Giurgiu 1-1 Celtic

There’s no time for Celtic to make their extra man count. From the resulting free-kick the Scottish champions surrender possession and Astra are able to close the game out with a couple of long balls.

7.51pm GMT19:51

Red card! Astra down to 10 men

90+2 min: Astra down to ten men for a hefty challenge by Vincent Laban on Mulgrew. Van Dijk is booked for some argy bargy that followed.

It was an awful two-footed lunge from the Astra player. He jumped in, and is rightfully off the pitch.

All over in Cyprus, Asteras 1-2 Tottenham.

Updated at 8.05pm GMT

7.50pm GMT19:50

90+1 min: That lovely Amorim goal has really stung Celtic, who are failing to put any pressure on Astra. Adam Matthews decides to take things into his own hands, driving forward from deep in his own half, but the moment he gives the ball to someone else Griffiths fouls an Astra defender - and Celtic must battle to win the ball again.

7.47pm GMT19:47

88 min: Celtic are struggling to get the ball. Not great when they’re desperate for a late winner. Florescu tries a hopeful shot from outside the area, it bounces just in front of Gordon and he fumbles, and as Bukari battles for the rebound he fouls the Celtic defender. Free-kick.

In the Tottenham game Federico Fazio is sent off for Spurs for the second time in seven appearances and Asteras claw a goal back from the resulting penalty. 2-1 to Tottenham, in to injury time.

7.43pm GMT19:43

85 min: If it stays like this expect lots of Celtic complaints about that refereeing decision, it certainly didn’t seem like much, he just leaned slightly into the defender as the ball bounced, and the Astra player crumpled to the floor.

7.42pm GMT19:42

83 min: Leigh Griffiths should score! He darts on to a pass and takes it wide around Lung, but the keeper stays on his feet and manages to get a hand on the ball to force it past the post.

From the corner, Celtic think they’ve scored. The initial ball is cleared, but a long ball back into the box bounces in front of Griffiths, he leans into the Astra defender and fires into the net. But the referee has blown for the foul. Celtic are outraged.

Updated at 8.03pm GMT

7.40pm GMT19:40

82 min: Have Celtic blown it? They will have to rouse themselves from the stupor they’ve been in for the last twenty minutes. Adam Matthews comes on for Wakaso.

7.39pm GMT19:39

79 min: Out of nothing, Yahaya plays a lofted ball in to Florescu, who lurks inside the Celtic box. He knocks it to the substitute Amorim who is on hand to curl it into the top corner of Gordon’s goal.

Updated at 7.40pm GMT

7.38pm GMT19:38

Goal! Astra Giurgiu 1-1 Celtic (Amorim, 79)

Oh dear, Celtic.

Updated at 7.39pm GMT

7.36pm GMT19:36

77 min: Charlie Mulgrew forces a good save from Lung, racing towards the box he shoots low from 25 yards, with Griffiths screaming for a pass. Celtic win the corner - but Van Dijk leans on his marker and Astra have the free-kick.

7.34pm GMT19:34

75 min: Pliatsikas darts down the right, and some how smuggles the ball past Izaguirre and into the Celtic box, where he fires on the volley towards goal. Gordon is on hand to turn it away, Celtic break and Griffiths nearly has the chance to make an instant impact - but his shot is blocked and Astra clear.

It’s 4-1 Salzburg now, so Celtic just need to hold on to this lead ...

Updated at 7.34pm GMT

7.31pm GMT19:31

72 min: Yahaya hoofs the ball forward to Bukari who runs towards the goal, but he can’t out-pace Van Dijk and turns back, plays it back to Yahaya, who lashes wide from 25 yards out.

Stefan Skepovic makes way for Leigh Griffiths.

7.28pm GMT19:28

70 min: Any quality there was has really dropped - neither side able to keep the ball for more than a few passes before squandering possession. If it stays like this Celtic won’t mind though - Salzburg still lead, so a win puts Celtic through with two rounds to spare.

7.25pm GMT19:25

66 min: Celtic’s energy seems to have dropped, but Astra lack the quality to do anything about it. Scott Brown, as always, is still up for it - and earns himself a yellow card after tangling with Yahaya in the centre of the pitch. The Astra player is booked too and it’s a Celtic free-kick which Mulgrew plays backwards as the Scots try to build from the back.

Updated at 7.39pm GMT

7.21pm GMT19:21

63 min: Astra take off their captain, and probably their best player, Constantin Budescu, and on comes George Florescu. Astra need a lift if they’re to get back into this.

Immediately they win a corner off Lustig, Laban takes it but Van Dijk clears to safety.

Updated at 7.21pm GMT

7.18pm GMT19:18

60 min: Brown makes amends with a nice tackle in the middle, which allows him to feed Izaguirre on the left edge of the Astra area. The defender pulls the trigger and it’s over the bar.

7.15pm GMT19:15

57 min: A horrible miscue from Scott Brown on the edge of his own area gifts the ball to Bukari, he hits it on the volley, but while the shot is on target, it just dribbles into the arms of Gordon.

7.14pm GMT19:14

56 min: Izaguirre makes a fool of the Astra right-back, knocking it past his man before putting in a dangerous cross towards Scepovic, but Astra clear.

7.13pm GMT19:13

54 min: When Astra do get the ball it’s all in front of the Celtic back line, making it easy for them to bide their time before clearing the ball. They do finally get it out wide and Enache puts in a decent cross which Gordon punches clear, Pliatsikas has a chance to hit it on the edge of the area, but it’s high and not very handsome.

Updated at 7.13pm GMT

7.08pm GMT19:08

49 min: And Astra respond with their best move of the game, Budescu cuts in from the right, feeds the ball to Bukari on the edge of the Celtic area, he passes the ball to Enache on the right wing. The winger looks up and plays the ball to Budescu, who has crept all alone in to the Celtic box. The Astra player can only put the ball over the bar though. A let-off for Celtic.

7.05pm GMT19:05

47 min: Great bit of passing from Celtic. Wakaso has the ball on the left and plays in to Johansen on the edge of the Astra area, his first time back heel puts McGregor through on goal, but he blasts the ball over.

7.03pm GMT19:03

46 min: And they’re off, Celtic kick-off after Astra bring on William Amorim for Joaozinho.

The fog has most definitely not dispersed.

6.58pm GMT18:58

AC Jimbo seems to backing up Trygve Lie, suggesting that this is the a sign of Ronny Deila’s side taking shape.

I’m not yet sure if that’s a good thing - they’ve controlled most of the game, but it should have been 1-1 at half-time after that poor bit of defending by Denayer.

6.49pm GMT18:49

Half-time: Astra Giurgiu 0-1 Celtic

Lucky, lucky Celtic. Astra should have a penalty at the end of the half, but the referee gave the free-kick in Denayer’s favour and it remains 1-0 at half-time.

With Salzburg also 1-0 up at half-time, if it stays like this Deila’s team are in to the Europa League last 32.

6.47pm GMT18:47

45 min: Astra should have had a penalty. Bukari is charging towards Gordon in the goal, Denayer chases alongside and catches the Astra player’s foot in the box. Bukari goes down, taking Danayer with him as Gordon gathers the ball. But the referee gives the free-kick to Celtic. Very lucky indeed.

From that Celtic head forward and Mulgrew takes a pop from 25 yards out which Lung does well to parry back into his box, where it’s cleared to safety.

Updated at 6.58pm GMT

6.45pm GMT18:45

44 min: Dare I say it? Is the fog clearing? Enache has it down the right and I can see him! He exchanges passes with Budescu, but Celtic nick the ball and mark forward. Wakaso gets the ball 35 yards out and takes a speculative effort with Lung gathers easily.

6.42pm GMT18:42

41 min: After seeing the goal again it definitely flies into the top corner thanks to a deflection - Johansen won’t mind though. Astra are struggling to get hold of the ball now, but Celtic aren’t really threatening when they have it.

In Cyprus, Tottenham are 2-0, Harry Kane with their second.

Updated at 7.37pm GMT

6.40pm GMT18:40

Trygve Lie writes: “Is there a sense that Ronny Deila finally has begun to stamp his mark on this Celtic team, or is tonight’s opponent just too weak to measure the performance by?”

If I could see exactly what was happening I might be in a better place to judge ... I will say Astra certainly aren’t a good benchmark for a team of Celtic’s level, and Deila’s side impressed no-one with the performance in the home tie against the Romanians.

6.38pm GMT18:38

37 min: Ben Youssef gets booked for a poorly timed slide tackle on Izaguirre 15 yards into the Astra half. Celtic hit the low towards the box, but Astra clear the danger.

6.37pm GMT18:37

35 min: That strike may have taken a little deflection of Pliatsikas as it went in, but still a great hit from Johansen.

Elsewhere, Tottenham go 1-0 up thanks to an Andros Townsend penalty.

6.34pm GMT18:34

32 min: Mulgrew and Johansen stand over the ball, arguing about who will connect with their left foot, the referee takes an age moving back the Astra wall.

Eventually he’s satisfied and Mulgrew steps up to take it, but it’s straight into the Astra wall. That doesn’t matter though, as it bounces back to Johansen who gets out all his frustration about being denied the opportunity to take the set-piece and fires it high into the left-hand top corner. A lovely strike.

Updated at 6.47pm GMT

6.33pm GMT18:33

Goal! Astra 0-1 Celtic (Johansen, 32)

A lovely strike from Johansen after Mulgrew’s free-kick bounces off the wall back to him.

Updated at 6.47pm GMT

6.32pm GMT18:32

30 min: Astra win a free-kick on the right, 35 yards out, Laban takes it, but it’s headed away by Celtic and someone clears long, Scepovic collects the ball and feeds Johansen who cuts inside from the right, exchanges passes with Mulgrew and is promptly fouled on the edge of the area by Ben Youssef. Free-kick Celtic.

6.29pm GMT18:29

28 min: Brown gifts the ball to Ben Youssef who charges into the Celtic box, skipping past the challenge of Lustig, but he can’t get the ball into the middle.

Celtic clear, but Yahaya gets the ball in the middles, charges towards goal and from 25 yards out fires towards Gordon’s top right corner. The Scot makes a fine save and Astra have a corner.

They take it short, but I can’t see what happens as it’s on the foggy side of the pitch. They lose the ball anyway.

6.26pm GMT18:26

25 min: Celtic are dominating the ball now, but are having trouble getting behind Astra as the Romanians drop deeper. Pressure from Scott Brown forces a throw in deep in Astra territory. The ball is worked to Izaguirre on the left - but the cross is cleared. No way through for Celtic.

6.24pm GMT18:24

This Celtic game would seriously benefit from the arrival of some ghostly pirates #TheFog

This fog is making this whole match look like a flashback. #celtic #EuropaLeague

6.23pm GMT18:23

22 min: Wakaso slides in in the middle to win the ball and set Celtic forward, Scott Brown charges into the box, is fed the ball but ends up stranded on the right looking to build again. He drops back and tries to get the ball to Scepovic, but the move breaks down.

6.21pm GMT18:21

20 min: Enache dances past Scott Brown on the right and gets to the byline, he cuts the ball in low, but Gordon gathers. Celtic break quickly through the middle and it’s two on two, but Wakaso’s cross goes harmlessly out for an Astra throw on the other side.

6.19pm GMT18:19

18 min: That was close!

Izaguirre (I think; it was in the fog so I’ll have to take the commentator’s word for it) dances past the Astra defender on the left of the box and whips it in low, Johansen gets on the end of it but Lung saves high to his right. Another corner.

Johansen takes again, Van Dijk gets on the end of it but heads it wide.

Updated at 6.19pm GMT

6.17pm GMT18:17

16 min: Celtic enjoy their first concerted spell of possession - and win a corner as Johansen feeds the ball towards Lustig on the right of Astra’s box.

Johansen steps up to take it, drills it towards the goal and Lung clears it from his line.

6.15pm GMT18:15

14 min: Very slow start to this game, almost as if neither side was expecting to play it ... But play it they are.

Lustig concedes a free-kick, jumping in to Joaozinho by the halfway line, from that Astra attempt to work it forward, but an overambitious back-heel from Budescu allows Celtic to get the ball forward.

6.13pm GMT18:13

11 min: Brown tries to drive Celtic forward, running through the middle before trying to exchange passes with Lustig, who promptly surrenders possession to Astra.

6.09pm GMT18:09

8 min: But I can see this as Bukari breaks forward down the left, he’s heading towards the box but Denayer takes the ball off him and Gordon clears.

Astra get the ball back, Budescu and Jaozinho exchange passes on the left, before the latter whips in a cross that drifts clear of everyone and out of play.

6.07pm GMT18:07

7 min: Astra enjoy a spot of the ball down their right, of course. I think Izaguirre clears it for a throw, but it’s very hard to be sure.

Updated at 6.20pm GMT

6.06pm GMT18:06

5 min: When the ball is on Astra’s right it becomes near impossible to see it, so let’s hope that Lustig and McGregor on the Celtic right enjoy plenty of the ball tonight.

Van Dijk isn’t helping though, he lofts the ball forward to the left - it disappears into the murk. I think Astra have cleared it. The referee then spends some time tooting, pointing to the invisible area of the pitch, and then Astra have the ball in their own half.

Sigh.

6.04pm GMT18:04

3 min: The team in black (Celtic) enjoy some ball on the edge of the opposition box, but the team in white (Astra) clear the danger. I’m afraid identifying individual players is near impossible.

Apart from Scott Brown, whose bald head shines through the fog like a beacon of hope. Big bald hope.

6.02pm GMT18:02

1 min: Celtic try to get the ball forward to Scepovic, but it goes straight to an Astra defender. Not surprising as it seems unlikely the players can see from one end of the pitch to the other.

6.01pm GMT18:01

Kick off!

Astra kick off to get the game underway. I can barely see what’s happening though.

5.59pm GMT17:59

They’re doing the anthems ... at least I think they are. It’s hard to see through the haze.

Gary McAllister says it looks worse on TV than in the ground. I’m not convinced. They can’t play unless they can see from box-to-box. I’m not sure you can see from side-to-side.

5.57pm GMT17:57

Apparently more than half the fans in the ground are Celtic fans - the players are lining up to come on to the pitch - but the suggestion is they will kick off and head straight back off. I imagine there’ll be a few less in the ground at 11am tomorrow.

If I can see what’s happening I’ll keep you updated.

5.48pm GMT17:48

The fog has got worse. And it was not good to start with. I cannot imagine this game taking place tonight.

5.47pm GMT17:47

Ronny Deila is questioned on whether the game will go ahead: “It’s hard to say, it’s quite foggy. The ref has to take a decision ... We just have to prepare now.”

5.42pm GMT17:42

It does not look great out in Giurgiu ...

Celtic team heading out onto the pitch for pre match warm up pic.twitter.com/Lg6HrcnLM0

5.37pm GMT17:37

If the game is called off and you don’t fancy watching/reading about the Spurs game may I recommend you find a copy of The Adventure of the Bruce Partington Plans.

There’s no football, but it’s quality Sherlock Holmes fog-based action.

5.27pm GMT17:27

Some suggestion that the game may kick off and then be immediately stopped by the referee to be played at 11am tomorrow. Not sure why they would do that and not call it off before.

5.20pm GMT17:20

It’s not the tyne, but there is fog, and it’s near the river Danube. So ...

5.10pm GMT17:10

The teams are in!

Astra Giurgiu: Lung; Pliatsikas, Youssef, Oro, Marais; Laban, Yahaya; Enache, Budescu, Joaozinho; Bukari. Subs: Coman, Florescu, Seto, Chitu, Gaman, Rus, Amorim.

Celtic: Gordon; Lustig, Denayer, Van Dijk, Izaguirre; Brown, Mulgrew; McGregor, Johansen, Wakaso; Scepovic. Subs: Zaluska, Matthews, Ambrose, Biton, Tonev, Griffiths, Kayal.

Chris Sutton seems very sceptical that the match will kickoff on time ...

5.07pm GMT17:07

Celtic’s Twitter feed gives a slightly clearer look at the stadium ...

The home of Astra Giurgiu, where the Hoops will be hoping to collect three points tonight. #UEL (MH) pic.twitter.com/4nm47yGvkh

5.04pm GMT17:04

Breaking news!

The game is on. I may not be able to tell you what is happening though, as the warm-up is pretty much invisible due to the layer of fog.

5.00pm GMT17:00

Preamble*

*Everything you are about to read may be rendered irrelevant by fog in Romania which has put this game at risk of being called off.

Celtics euro game in doubt & may be delayed to tomorrow. Celtic been onto SFA about postponing Sundays game if so.... pic.twitter.com/gw7lBMFPFN

Did you know that Astra Giurgiu are the Romanian answer to MK Dons? No? Well let me fill you in.

Their owner Ioan Niculae moved the team from Ploiesti – a transport hub 35 miles north of Bucharest – to Giurgiu, a city on the Danube, facing the Bulgarian town of Ruse, in September 2012. 91 years of history thrown away by the richest man in Romania in search of glory.

To be fair, it seems to be working rather better than Pete Winkelman’s effort up in Milton Keynes. Astra qualified for the Europa League in their first season in Giurgiu and are there again – albeit pointless at the bottom of the group. But spare a thought for the poor residents of Ploiesti – who now have a two hour drive through Bucharest if they want to follow Franchise Giurgiu.

Celtic fans have no such trouble – although watching their SPL performances hasn’t been much fun this season – with the latest indignity the racism charge levelled against Aleksandar Tonev (eligible to play tonight despite his ban in Scotland). At least they have the first Old Firm game since 2012 to look forward to in January – and a win in Romania could well confirm their place in the last 32 of the Europa, an achievement that manager Ronny Deila says would be his greatest achievement.

“It will be very big. We are talking about Europe now.”

How must Stromsgodset fans feel about this belittling of the Norwegian title Deila won with them in 2013?

Anyway, back to tonight: will Astra go for Gabriel Enache or Constantin Budescu in midfield? I’ll be back shortly with all the team news.

In the mean time why not take a look at what the Secret Footballer makes of the humble football fan:

I’ve seen it a million times before – it is the insatiable and totally irrational need for people who know next to nothing about football to reduce the game to a primeval and nonsensical rationale so as to have some flimsy foundation upon which to demonise their own come Monday morning ...