Celtic Clinch Scottish Title in Dramatic Last-Gasp Fashion

Celtic were crowned Scottish champions for a record 56th time after a dramatic 3-1 victory over Heart of Midlothian on the final day of the season. The win, sealed with two goals in stoppage time, denied Hearts a first league title in 60 years.

Hearts had taken the lead through Lawrence Shankland in the first half, but Celtic equalized from the penalty spot via Arne Engels just before the break after a VAR review. The match remained level until the closing minutes, with Daizen Maeda scoring a go-ahead goal that was initially flagged offside before being overturned by VAR.

Callum Osmand then sealed the championship with virtually the last kick of the game, running onto an empty net as Hearts pushed for an equalizer. The victory marked the 14th title in 15 seasons for Celtic, who have been revitalized since the interim management of Martin O’Neill.

For Hearts, it was a repeat of a heartbreaking scenario from 40 years prior when they also lost out on the final day to Celtic. This season’s title race was the first to go down to the wire between the top two since 1991.

Manager Martin O’Neill described the win as “the most special place on Earth,” while player Callum McGregor hailed the team’s resilience and O’Neill’s influence. “Everyone wrote us off,” McGregor stated.

The dramatic conclusion followed a controversial late penalty awarded to Celtic in their midweek match against Motherwell, which had swung the momentum back in their favor. Had that game not resulted in a win, Celtic would have needed a larger margin of victory on Saturday.

This source is from the Daily Monitor (Uganda).