It’s very subjective and everyone may have their own personal favourites. Watching Edouard anticipate Lustig’s clearance/assist to score the winner in the cup final was very, very special BUT there’s just one more goal that has the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
Funnily enough, it’s the same goal scorer against the same side which ended up with the same result as the cup final.
Edouard vs Hearts deep into injury time gets my personal pick for the most important goal of the campaign. Yes, Scott Brown won the League at Rugby Park but Odsonne Edouard picked us all off the floor after a tumultuous 48 hours in which Brendan Rodgers deserted the Celtic fans without a moments thought and Neil Lennon came into pick up the pieces.
The Celtic fans were in a state of mourning and shock as they watched a man who they had called a hero, who sold us on his Celtic fandom walk away with only three months of the season still to go. We were shellshocked while our rivals licked their lips at the prospect of Celtic collapsing into themselves like a dying star.
Celtic took the lead at Tynecastle in the first half but it would ironically be Brendan Rodgers’ philosophy on the night which would give Hearts a way back into the game. Scott Bain and Kristoffer Ajer passing it at the back made way for a slip-up and a penalty to be awarded to the home side.
Tynecastle is a cauldron and on that cold Wednesday in the deep dark February evening, they smelled blood once they had equalised. We talk about the Celtic fans being in shock but the players were also in the same boat – they looked rattled and nervous going into the final 20 minutes. New interim boss Neil Lennon was screaming from the sidelines but it looked as if Hearts had done enough to ensure points would be dropped on the first game of the post-Rodgers era. Supporters in the stadium looking up to the heavens and everyone watching on TV who had watched the Rodgers saga unfold were ready to take another punch to the gut.
As the game looked just about over, Celtic just managed to hold onto possession after a slack pass from Lustig to Brown. Once the Swede had controlled the ball he passed it back to the Celtic captain who put one last ball into the box, one last throw of the dice with every single Celtic fan holding their breath. As the ball fell out the night sky and dropped into the box it fell to the one man you would want it to fall to – Odsonne Edouard….BANG….2-1 Celtic.
48 hours of disbelief, frustration and fear for the future turned into wild celebrations. This was not your typical late winner from a Celtic side that never quit. This was a goal that stood out from the rest, a goal that bagged us much more than three points.
This was the most important goal of the treble treble campaign. Not in a literal sense but in terms of emotion and a statement, this was the one! Change my mind…
Edouard scoring a late winner at Tynecastle, I think we've been a bit light up front since Moussa left & Griff took some time out, hopefully that'll be remedied in the summer pic.twitter.com/1MNOsSsROU
— Lisbon Lion (@tirnaog09) May 16, 2019
