McDonald brace lifts Celtic over Aberdeen in SPL

A Scott McDonald double helped Celtic inflict Aberdeen’s first defeat at Pittodrie in six months here on Saturday with a hard-fought 3-1 win to move four points clear in the race for the Scottish Premier League.

The home side dominated large spells of the match and deservedly took a first-half lead when Chris Maguire headed home from a Charlie Mulgrew free-kick.

However, the Hoops hit back at the stroke of half-time through an Andrew Considine headed own goal before McDonald’s second-half double gave Celtic the points.

It means Celtic will be top of the league going into next week’s crunch Old Firm fixture at Ibrox top of the table no matter how Rangers fare against Hearts on Sunday.

“We could have been 3-0 up at half-time with the amount of chances we created and then we lost a goal 30 seconds before the break,” Aberdeen manager Jimmy Calderwood said.

“In the second-half we gave them too much room but I don’t think we deserved to lose 3-1.”

Celtic manager Gordon Strachan said it was a game of contrasting halves.

“It was high energy and purposeful football from Aberdeen in the first-half. We had a few chances but we were a bit lax today (Saturday).

“We stuck at it and reorganised at half-time and it got better and better and we made a lot of good chances.”

Aberdeen started the game at a furious pace and created a number of opportunities in the opening exchanges. Sone Aluko found Maguire at the edge of the box after some trickery on the wing but his weak shot was straight at Artur Boruc.

The striker should have put the Dons ahead in the fifth minute after he latched on to a long ball but when one-on-one with Boruc he sent his attempted lob over the keeper and it drifted well wide.

In the 12th minute a McDonald pass across the edge of the box found Aiden McGeady but the Irish international sent his shot yards wide of the post. Maguire made amends for his earlier miss when he gave Aberdeen the lead in the 22nd minute.

Former Celtic player Mulgrew whipped in an inswinging free-kick from the right and the unmarked striker leaped highest to head it past Boruc, who got a hand to it.

Minutes later Maguire powered into the box and, under pressure from Lee Naylor, let fly with a fierce drive which Boruc did well to turn round his near post. From the resulting corner Mulgrew found captain Scott Severin lurking at the back post but he sent his first time effort high over the bar.

With 30 minutes gone Paul Hartley, in for the suspended Scott Brown, tested Jamie Langfield with a high curling shot from 25 yards but the Aberdeen keeper acrobatically turned it over the bar when it looked destined for the top corner.

Disaster struck for the Dons seconds before half-time when an own goal from Considine put Celtic level. Shunsuke Nakamura’s floated free-kick from the right was initially cleared before Gary Caldwell’s goalward header was nodded over Langfield by his teammate.

Caldwell, the Celtic captain, making his comeback from injury, lasted just five minutes of the second-half before limping off to be replaced by Glenn Loovens.

Boruc almost presented Aberdeen with a goal when his attempted clearance cannoned off Maguire and drifted just wide of the post. At the opposite end Langfield produced an excellent reflex save when he tipped Lee Naylor’s 20-yard deflected, dipping shot over the bar.

In the 59th minute Tommy Wright should have done better when he latched on to a Mulgrew pass in the box but he took too long to take aim and Caldwell cleared the danger.

Celtic took the lead against the run of play in the 72nd minute. McDonald ran on to a Andreas Hinkel pass down the right-wing and finished with a low angled strike which beat Langfield at his near post.

Nakamura came close with a curling free-kick late on before McDonald raced clear in injury time to round Langfield and slot home his second goal of the game after a defensive lapse by Considine.

Bottom placed club Falkirk got a vital 2-1 victory over Motherwell to move one point closer to St Mirren who were beaten 2-1 by Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Hamilton notched up a 2-1 win over Kilmarnock while a late David Goodwillie goal secured a 2-1 win for Dundee United over Hibs.