Scottish roundup: Celtic thrash Motherwell as Aberdeen collapse again
Celtic secured a convincing 4-0 victory against Motherwell, with their first goal coming from a penalty awarded just before half-time.
Arne Engels kicked off the scoring after a closely contested first half, taking advantage of a foul called against Aston Oxborough, the Motherwell keeper, for a clash with Yang Hyun-jun. Daizen Maeda then added another goal to increase the advantage. Later, substitutes Nicolas Kühn and Reo Hatate scored to ensure that Stuart Kettlewell, the manager of the visiting team, experienced his first loss in four outings at Celtic Park.
Kilmarnock delivered a crushing blow to Aberdeen with a commanding 4-0 win at Rugby Park. This defeat marked the seventh consecutive game that Aberdeen has gone without a victory, following yet another poor performance.
Kilmarnock earned their lead when Kyle Vassell managed to push the ball across the goal line for the first time in the 19th minute. They extended their lead just before the 60-minute mark when David Watson created some space and skillfully sent the ball past Aberdeen's goalkeeper, Dimitar Mitov. Innes Cameron, who came on as a substitute, scored the third goal in the 87th minute, and there was still a moment for another substitute, Bruce Anderson, to cap off an impressive victory for the home team during stoppage time.
Ross County secured a vital victory with a convincing 3-0 triumph over a struggling Dundee at Dens Park. Goals from Noah Chilvers, Josh Nisbet, and Jordan White marked the visitors' first away win in the league since September 2023. This result moves the Highland team up to 10th place in the standings, while Dundee falls to ninth.
David Gray believed that his revitalized Hibernian team truly deserved their first away win against their Edinburgh rivals, Hearts, in five years. Dwight Gayle came off the bench to help secure a 2-1 victory.
The teams went into halftime with the score tied, thanks to own goals from Hearts' Kye Rowles and Hibs' Rocky Bushiri. Although the visitors had dominated the first half and were disappointed not to be in the lead, they ultimately secured the victory in the 78th minute. Gayle, who revealed last Friday that he intends to retire at the end of the season, scored the decisive goal by tapping in a cross from Nicky Cadden.
Hibs hadn't claimed victory at Tynecastle since December 26, 2019, and the players were overjoyed after the match ended. "I'm really happy," Gray remarked. "You can see that in the celebrations at the finish. It's a tough venue to play at, as history shows."
Sam Dalby netted his ninth goal in just 11 matches, helping Dundee United secure a 2-1 victory against St Johnstone and propel his team into fourth place. St Johnstone took the lead just before half-time with Makenzie Kirk scoring his sixth goal of the season. However, Dundee United quickly equalized with Glenn Middleton, a former St Johnstone player, finding the net in the 51st minute, and from that point on, they dominated the match.
Dalby's goal at the hour mark was the minimum Jim Goodwin's team deserved for their superior performance. The opposing side struggled to create opportunities until Declan Gallagher, the captain of the visiting team, received a red card with just three minutes remaining. Simo Valakari's squad continues to linger at the bottom of the league after suffering their 13th defeat.
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