Latest news with #ColbyDonovan
The National
12-07-2025
- Sport
- The National
Rodgers names Celtic starting XI for closed-doors friendly
The Scottish Premiership champions are in Portugal for a pre-season training camp as preparations ramp up for the new 2025/26 campaign. They take on Estrela today before facing the might of Sporting CP on Wednesday evening. Read more: Celtic have already played out two friendlies this summer, beating Queen's Park 1-0 last Friday before Colby Donovan's late header sealed a 2-1 victory over Cork City in Ireland on Tuesday. For today's match, which kicks off at 11am, several senior players have returned to the ranks and are available for selection. From midweek at Pairc Ui Chaoimh, Rodgers has made five changes to his lineup this morning. The action will be streamed on CelticTV, but you can keep up to date with proceedings by following our dedicated live blog HERE. Starting XI: Sinisalo, Donovan, McPherson, Trusty, Tierney, McGregor, McCowan, Hatate, Tilio, Maeda, Osmand. Subs: Doohan, Clarke, Rice, Scales, Nygren, Idah, Yang, Kenny, Inamura, Engels, Summers, Montgomery, Ure, Murray, Forrest, McArdle, Ralston, Isiguzo.
BBC News
09-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Rodgers hails 'Celtic mentality' in late pre-season win
Brendan Rodgers hailed his side's determination to "still find that Celtic mentality to keep going right to the very end" in their pre-season victory over Cork Colby Donovan scored a late goal in the 2-1 win at Pairc Ui Rodgers described the match against the League of Ireland outfit as a "really good exercise" for his side, which was far from full strength and was much changed by the final whistle."First half, really good," the Celtic boss said. "We obviously changed the team and a lot of the young players in the second half will have learned from that."We didn't quite keep the ball so well and gave up the ball too cheaply."But overall, still find that Celtic mentality to keep going right to the very end and I've always said there's never a friendly when you play for Celtic. "It's always a test because every team will want to always beat you. So we kept going right to the very end and Colby, who's been excellent, got the winning goal."
Irish Daily Mirror
08-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Celtic fans invade Pairc Ui Chaoimh pitch after winning pre-season trophy
Celtic fans invaded the pitch in scenes reminiscent of a big Cork GAA hurling day as they won the inaugural Cork Super Cup in Pairc Ui Chaoimh on Tuesday evening. Cork City hosted the Scottish giants at the home of Cork GAA for a glamour friendly with the Hoops running out 2-1 winners on the day. The game had all the tell-tale signs of a pre-season friendly with a crowd half hearted trying to drum up an atmosphere while Celtic were undercooked as they gear up for the new season. In the end, Celtic would run out 2-1 winners thanks to a late Colby Donovan header, while Cork showed plenty of fight and were the fitter and better team for large spells of the game. In truth, there wasn't much to shout about during the game but the fans who paid to attend made sure to storm the pitch afterwards. There was disappointment for fans with hometown hero Adam Idah not selected to play. Ireland forward Idah had been a central figure in promoting the game and was in Cork but given he played Ireland's international games after Celtic's Scottish Cup final he has been given some extra days off. Idah is back in training with the Celtic squad and could feature as soon as this Saturday in their next friendly. The Scottish Champions are busy with upcoming friendlies as they gear up for their league opener on August 3rd. Although Ireland is a relatively attractive venue for pre-season friendlies with the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United playing fixtures here in recent years, there is a surprisingly small slate of games this time round. The only confirmed fixture up to this point is Leeds versus AC Milan in the Aviva Stadium.
BBC News
08-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Celtic's Welsh may require shoulder surgery
Celtic defender Stephen Welsh may require surgery after a recurrence of a shoulder Welsh, 25, came off injured during Tuesday's pre-season friendly win over Cork manager Brendan Rodgers told Celtic media: "He's done his shoulder again."It's the fourth time it's popped out. You know when it keeps coming out like that, there's the possibility of an operation so he has to have a wee think about that."By the time the physios got on, it had popped back in but the pain was too sore so we took him off." Welsh has twice been loaned out by Celtic, most recently to Mechelen in the first part of 2025. All in all, he has made 107 competitive team regular Luke McCowan and 18-year-old defender Colby Donovan scored in Celtic's 2-1 win at Pairc Ui Chaoimh."He's very competitive and I like him," Rodgers said of Donovan. "He's very aggressive, he passes forward."He'll become a bit less rash as his career moves forward but I like his personality and I like his dominance and he can play football, which you have to be able to do when you play for Celtic."Meanwhile, defender Gustaf Lagerbielke has left Celtic to join Braga in Portugal. Sweden cap Lagerbielke, 25.
