Celtic thrash Dundee to go top

Celtic 6 Dundee 2

The champions sent out a chilling message to both Rangers and FC Porto tonight by waving goodbye to Parkhead for the season with an awesome destruction of Dundee.

Doubles from Alan Thompson and Shaun Maloney and other goals from Henrik Larsson and Johan Mjallby moved Celtic back to the top of the Bank of Scotland Premier League in some style and heaped the pressure back on Rangers, who go to Hearts this weekend for their penultimate game of the season.

But with the UEFA Cup final just a week away Martin O’Neill’s men will go to Seville on top of the world after producing one of their best performances of an epic campaign.

Celtic were lifted before kick-off with the appearance of Saturday’s hero Thompson in the line-up after recovering from a hamstring injury while number one goalkeeper Robert Douglas showed he was not far away from fitness with a place on the bench.

The Hoops came agonisingly close to going ahead in the ninth minute after good work from Maloney, in for Chris Sutton, near the byline.

Thompson found Larsson and he turned to find the youngster, who wriggled free to fire across the face of goal, but Didier Agathe was just inches from getting a vital touch.

But Tennent’s Scottish Cup finalists had drawn with Rangers recently and they gave Celtic a warning in the 12th minute when former Bhoy Mark Burchill drilled a low shot which Javier Sanchez Broto got down well to save.

Celtic reacted to that in the best possible way by taking the lead two minutes later through Larsson, who beat the offside trap to run onto Thompson’s through-ball, go round Julian Speroni and blast a left-foot shot into the roof of the net.

But the Swede should have done better in the 23rd minute when he got away down the right flank, but opted not to square across goal for Maloney and the chance slipped away.

Celtic paid the price three minutes later when the visitors silenced the home crowd with an equaliser.

Nacho Novo cheekily nut-megged Joos Valgaeren near the right touchline before squaring the ball to the unmarked Barry Smith, whose shot from 12 yards flew through the legs of Mjallby to wrong-foot Broto.

But parity lasted only a minute as Thompson put them in front again from five yards, stooping to head in Larsson’s flick-on from Mjallby’s cross.

Just three minutes later they doubled their advantage, courtesy of the in-form Englishman again.

Agathe’s cross flew across the face of goal and Thompson swivelled to hit home a shot on his supposed-weaker right foot.

In the 33rd minute Stilian Petrov left four defenders trailing in his wake with a Frank Worthington-style flick over his head but drilled his shot straight at the relieved Argentinian goalkeeper.

But Dundee again showed their minds were not on Hampden Park when Gavin Rae fired a low shot just past the upright from the right of the box.

A minute after the interval Lee Wilkie, who was booed throughout for giving penalties away to Rangers recently, was fortunate not to give Celtic spot-kicks in the 46th minute.

Bobo Balde flicked back Petrov’s corner and the defender looked to handle the ball, which referee Tom Brown failed to spot.

But Petrov again went close to extending Celtic’s lead moments later when he flashed a right-foot volley just over from Thompson’s well-worked corner.

Celtic, however, did go further ahead in the 52nd minute courtesy of another nightmare from Wilkie.

He was caught in possession from Broto’s long punt downfield and Maloney coolly prodded the ball past the advancing Speroni.

The goals continued to flow Maloney that made it five in the 63rd minute with a finish his strike partner would have been proud of.

Thompson acted on a mistake by Dave Mackay and played the youngster clean through and he curled a right-foot shot out of reach of the advancing Speroni.

Celtic were in full flight and Larsson missed two good chances, the second after another blunder by Wilkie, and Thompson’s shot was blocked by the desperate Dundee defenders.

Wilkie was eventually put out of his misery in the 69th minute when he was replaced by Beta Carranza before Novo shot wide when one-on-one with Broto.

But Celtic were still hungry for more goals and they enhanced their goal difference further in the 76th minute.

Balde rose to head Agathe’s cross into the path of Mjallby to poke the ball into the empty net from close range.

But Novo again squandered a great chance with a couple of minutes remaining on the clock before Lee Mair headed in the dying seconds to give Rangers some hope.