2006–07 Celtic F.C. season

Celtic started season 2006–07 looking to retain the Scottish Premier League trophy and the Scottish League Cup. They also competed in the Scottish Cup, and entered the Champions League at the group stage. Such was the good form of Celtic and the lack of a clear rival in the early stages of the 2006–07 season, that bookmakers Paddy Power paid out on Celtic as the winners of the SPL on 6 November 2006, only 13 games into the season.[1] By mid-November Celtic were 11 points clear of their nearest challengers.

Celtic

2006–07 season
Chairman	Brian Quinn
Manager	Gordon Strachan
Ground	Celtic Park Glasgow, Scotland (Capacity: 60,355)
Scottish Premier League	1st
Scottish Cup	Winners
Scottish League Cup	Quarter-finals
Champions League	Round of 16
Top goalscorer	League: Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink (13) All: Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink (18)
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Having qualified automatically for the group stage of the Champions League, Celtic were drawn with Benfica, Copenhagen, and Manchester United. Although Celtic lost their 3 away games, a 100% record at home earned them qualification to the knockout stage for the first time since the group format was introduced in 1992–93. Their opponents in the last 16 were Milan. After both legs of the tie ended 0–0, Celtic's Champions League run was ended by a solitary Milan goal in extra-time by Kaká.

During the January 2007 transfer window Celtic signed Scotland internationals and former Hearts players Steven Pressley and Paul Hartley, full-back Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé from Rennes on loan and goalkeeper Mark Brown from Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

On 22 April 2007 Celtic won their second consecutive league championship, and 40th overall. The title was secured by an injury-time free-kick from Shunsuke Nakamura in a 2–1 victory against Kilmarnock.[2] The result left Celtic 13 points clear of Rangers with four matches remaining. They finished the season 12 points above Rangers.

On 26 May 2007 Celtic won the Scottish Cup for a record 34th time after beating Dunfermline 1–0. The winner was scored by Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé in the 84th minute.

Results

Scottish Premier League

Main article: 2006–07 Scottish Premier League

Celtic v Kilmarnock

29 July 2006 SPL	Celtic	4 – 1	Kilmarnock	Celtic Park
	Żurawski  25', 90+3' Jarošík  38' Nakamura  75'	BBC Sport	Naismith  87'	Attendance: 54,620 Referee: Iain Brines

Hearts v Celtic

6 August 2006 SPL	Hearts	2 – 1	Celtic	Tynecastle Stadium
	Bednář  49', 87'	BBC Sport	Petrov  65'	Attendance: 16,822 Referee: Stuart Dougal

Celtic v St Mirren

12 August 2006 SPL	Celtic	2 – 0	St Mirren	Celtic Park
	McManus  49' Petrov  65'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 56,579 Referee: Brian Winter

Inverness CT v Celtic

20 August 2006 SPL	Inverness CT	1 – 1	Celtic	Caledonian Stadium
	Munro  80'	BBC Sport	Pearson  26'	Attendance: 7,332 Referee: Craig Thomson

Celtic v Hibernian

26 August 2006 SPL	Celtic	2 – 1	Hibernian	Celtic Park
	Żurawski  62' Vennegoor of Hesselink  66'	BBC Sport	Brown  8'	Attendance: 58,078 Referee: Charlie Richmond

Aberdeen v Celtic

9 September 2006 SPL	Aberdeen	0 – 1	Celtic	Pittodrie Stadium
		BBC Sport	Vennegoor of Hesselink  79'	Attendance: 15,304 Referee: Mike McCurry

Celtic v Dunfermline Athletic

16 September 2006 SPL	Celtic	1 – 0	Dunfermline Athletic	Celtic Park
	McManus  31'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 55,894 Referee: Eddie Smith

Celtic v Rangers

23 September 2006 SPL	Celtic	2 – 0	Rangers	Celtic Park
	Gravesen  35' Miller  74'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 59,341 Referee: Dougie McDonald

Falkirk v Celtic

1 October 2006 SPL	Falkirk	0 – 1	Celtic	Falkirk Stadium
		BBC Sport	McGeady  84'	Attendance: 7,139 Referee: Iain Brines

Dundee United v Celtic

14 October 2006 SPL	Dundee United	1 – 4	Celtic	Tannadice Park
	Hunt  5'	BBC Sport	Nakamura  44', 48', 58' Vennegoor of Hesselink  52'	Attendance: 10,504 Referee: Mike McCurry

Celtic v Motherwell

21 October 2006 SPL	Celtic	2 – 1	Motherwell	Celtic Park
	Craigan  16' (o.g.) Żurawski  66'	BBC Sport	McDonald  77'	Attendance: 57,742 Referee: Alan Freeland

Kilmarnock v Celtic

28 October 2006 SPL	Kilmarnock	1 – 2	Celtic	Rugby Park
	Nish  49'	BBC Sport	Nakamura  55' Miller  75'	Attendance: 10,083 Referee: John Underhill

Celtic v Hearts

4 November 2006 SPL	Celtic	2 – 1	Hearts	Celtic Park
	Jarošík  86' Gordon  90+1' (o.g.)	BBC Sport	Velička  72'	Attendance: 58,971 Referee: Craig Thomson

St Mirren v Celtic

12 November 2006 SPL	St Mirren	1 – 3	Celtic	Love Street
	Sutton  56'	BBC Sport	Gravesen  2', 21', 69'	Attendance: 8,445 Referee: Stuart Dougal

Celtic v Inverness CT

18 November 2006 SPL	Celtic	3 – 0	Inverness CT	Celtic Park
	Dods  43' (o.g.) Vennegoor of Hesselink  72' Jarošík  85'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 56,637 Referee: Kenny Clark

Hibernian v Celtic

26 November 2006 SPL	Hibernian	2 – 2	Celtic	Easter Road
	Sproule  12' Thomson  63'	BBC Sport	Sno  70' McGeady  74'	Attendance: 16,747 Referee: Mike McCurry

Celtic v Aberdeen

2 December 2006 SPL	Celtic	1 – 0	Aberdeen	Celtic Park
	Żurawski  72'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 58,911 Referee: Dougie McDonald

Dunfermline Athletic v Celtic

10 December 2006 SPL	Dunfermline Athletic	1 – 2	Celtic	East End Park
	Simmons  90+2'	BBC Sport	McGeady  49' Żurawski  68'	Attendance: 7,080 Referee: Craig Thomson

Rangers v Celtic

17 December 2006 SPL	Rangers	1 – 1	Celtic	Ibrox Stadium
	Hemdani  88'	BBC Sport	Gravesen  38'	Attendance: 50,418 Referee: Kenny Clark

Celtic v Falkirk

23 December 2006 SPL	Celtic	1 – 0	Falkirk	Celtic Park
	Gravesen  24'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 55,000 Referee: Iain Brines

Celtic v Dundee United

26 December 2006 SPL	Celtic	2 – 2	Dundee United	Celtic Park
	O'Dea  78' Nakamura  80'	BBC Sport	Robertson  17' Samuel  58'	Attendance: 57,343 Referee: Brian Winter

Motherwell v Celtic

30 December 2006 SPL	Motherwell	1 – 1	Celtic	Fir Park
	Smith  90+1'	BBC Sport	Riordan  37'	Attendance: 9,769 Referee: Charlie Richmond

Celtic v Kilmarnock

2 January 2007 SPL	Celtic	2 – 0	Kilmarnock	Celtic Park
	O'Dea  39' McGeady  90+1'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 57,236 Referee: Steve Conroy

Hearts v Celtic

14 January 2007 SPL	Hearts	1 – 2	Celtic	Tynecastle Stadium
	Mikoliūnas  28'	BBC Sport	Vennegoor of Hesselink  59' Jarošík  81'	Attendance: 17,129 Referee: Kenny Clark

Celtic v St Mirren

20 January 2007 SPL	Celtic	5 – 1	St Mirren	Celtic Park
	Vennegoor of Hesselink  16', 61' (pen.), 75' McGeady  69' Miller  82'	BBC Sport	McGinn  47'	Attendance: 58,382 Referee: Craig Thomson

Inverness CT v Celtic

28 January 2007 SPL	Inverness CT	1 – 2	Celtic	Caledonian Stadium
	Bayne  57'	BBC Sport	Riordan  37' Vennegoor of Hesselink  90+3'	Attendance: 7,484 Referee: Iain Brines

Celtic v Hibernian

10 February 2007 SPL	Celtic	1 – 0	Hibernian	Celtic Park
	Beattie  54'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 59,659 Referee: Stuart Dougal

Aberdeen v Celtic

17 February 2007 SPL	Aberdeen	1 – 2	Celtic	Pittodrie Stadium
	Mackie  90+2'	BBC Sport	Beattie  9' Nakamura  20'	Attendance: 16,711 Referee: Craig Thomson

Celtic v Dunfermline Athletic

3 March 2007 SPL	Celtic	2 – 1	Dunfermline Athletic	Celtic Park
	Miller  4' Vennegoor of Hesselink  76'	BBC Sport	Hammill  87'	Attendance: 59,131 Referee: Steve Conroy

Celtic v Rangers

10 March 2007 SPL	Celtic	0 – 1	Rangers	Celtic Park
		BBC Sport	Ehiogu  50'	Attendance: 59,425 Referee: Stuart Dougal

Falkirk v Celtic

18 March 2007 SPL	Falkirk	1 – 0	Celtic	Falkirk Stadium
	Thomson  50'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 6,438 Referee: John Underhill

Dundee United v Celtic

31 March 2007 SPL	Dundee United	1 – 1	Celtic	Tannadice Park
	Daly  90+2'	BBC Sport	Nakamura  48'	Attendance: 11,363 Referee: Iain Brines

Celtic v Motherwell

7 April 2007 SPL	Celtic	1 – 0	Motherwell	Celtic Park
	Riordan  52'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 58,654 Referee: Eddie Smith

Kilmarnock v Celtic

22 April 2007 SPL	Kilmarnock	1 – 2	Celtic	Rugby Park
	Nish  50'	BBC Sport	Vennegoor of Hesselink  24' Nakamura  90+1'	Attendance: 12,654 Referee: Craig Thomson

Celtic v Hearts

29 April 2007 SPL	Celtic	1 – 3	Hearts	Celtic Park
	Pressley  63'	BBC Sport	Ivaškevičius  57' Driver  61' Pospíšil  71' (pen.)	Attendance: 59,510 Referee: Stuart Dougal

Rangers v Celtic

5 May 2007 SPL	Rangers	2 – 0	Celtic	Ibrox Stadium
	Boyd  34' Adam  55'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 50,384 Referee: Craig Thomson

Celtic v Aberdeen

12 May 2007 SPL	Celtic	2 – 1	Aberdeen	Celtic Park
	Vennegoor of Hesselink  33', 49'	BBC Sport	Mackie  41'	Attendance: 59,000 Referee: Charlie Richmond

Hibernian v Celtic

20 May 2007 SPL	Hibernian	2 – 1	Celtic	Easter Road
	Brown  60' Sproule  90+1'	BBC Sport	Riordan  56'	Attendance: 13,885 Referee: Iain Brines

UEFA Champions League

Main article: 2006–07 UEFA Champions League

Manchester United v Celtic

13 September 2006 Group Stage	Manchester United	3 – 2	Celtic	Old Trafford
	Saha  30' (pen.), 40' Solskjær  47'	BBC Sport	Vennegoor of Hesselink  21' Nakamura  43'	Attendance: 74,031 Referee: Ľuboš Micheľ

Celtic v F.C. København

26 September 2006 Group Stage	Celtic	1 – 0	F.C. København	Celtic Park
	Miller  30' (pen.)	BBC Sport		Attendance: 57,598 Referee: Florian Meyer

Celtic v Benfica

17 October 2006 Group Stage	Celtic	3 – 0	Benfica	Celtic Park
	Miller  56', 66' Pearson  90+1'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 58,313 Referee: Eric Braamhaar

Benfica v Celtic

1 November 2006 Group Stage	Benfica	3 – 0	Celtic	Estádio da Luz
	Caldwell  10' (o.g.) Nuno Gomes  22' Karyaka  76'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 49,000 Referee: Kyros Vassaras

Celtic v Manchester United

21 November 2006 Group Stage	Celtic	1 – 0	Manchester United	Celtic Park
	Nakamura  81'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 60,632 Referee: Manuel Mejuto González

F.C. København v Celtic

6 December 2006 Group Stage	F.C. København	3 – 1	Celtic	Parken Stadium
	Hutchinson  2' Grønkjær  27' Allbäck  57'	BBC Sport	Jarošík  75'	Attendance: 38,647 Referee: Bertrand Layec

Celtic v A.C. Milan

20 February 2007 Knockout Round	Celtic	0 – 0	A.C. Milan	Celtic Park
		BBC Sport		Attendance: 58,785 Referee: Terje Hauge

A.C. Milan v Celtic

7 March 2007 Knockout Round	A.C. Milan	1 – 0	Celtic	San Siro
	Kaká  93'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 65,000 Referee: Konrad Plautz

Scottish League Cup

Main article: 2006–07 Scottish League Cup

Celtic v St Mirren

19 September 2006 Third Round	Celtic	2 – 0	St Mirren	Celtic Park
	Beattie  76' Żurawski  87'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 32,587 Referee: Kenny Clark

Celtic v Falkirk

7 November 2006 Quarter Final	Celtic	1 – 1*	Falkirk	Celtic Park
	Żurawski  98'	BBC Sport	Stokes  99'	Attendance: 18,684 Referee: Charlie Richmond

*Celtic Lost the match 5-4 on penalties

Scottish Cup

Main article: 2006–07 Scottish Cup

Celtic v Dumbarton

6 January 2007 Third Round	Celtic	4 – 0	Dumbarton	Celtic Park
	Żurawski  3', 9' Vennegoor of Hesselink  43' Riordan  69'	BBC Sport		Attendance: 18,685 Referee: Willie Collum

Livingston v Celtic

3 February 2007 Fourth Round	Livingston	1 – 4	Celtic	Almondvale Stadium
	Mackay  18'	BBC Sport	O'Dea  30' Riordan  45+1', 59' Vennegoor of Hesselink  61'	Attendance: 7,281 Referee: Charlie Richmond

Inverness CT v Celtic

25 February 2007 Quarter Final	Inverness CT	1 – 2	Celtic	Caledonian Stadium
	Bayne  18'	BBC Sport	Pressley  89' Miller  90+1'	Attendance: 7,119 Referee: Dougie McDonald

St Johnstone v Celtic

14 April 2007 Semi Final	St Johnstone	1 – 2	Celtic	Hampden Park
	Hardie  19'	BBC Sport	Vennegoor of Hesselink  13' (pen.), 54'	Attendance: 28,339 Referee: Charlie Richmond

Dunfermline Athletic v Celtic

26 May 2007 Final	Dunfermline Athletic	0 – 1	Celtic	Hampden Park
		BBC Sport	Perrier-Doumbé  84'	Attendance: 49,600 Referee: Kenny Clark

Player statistics

Appearances and goals

List of squad players, including number of appearances by competition

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Premier League		Scottish Cup		League Cup		Champions League
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK		Artur Boruc	51	0	36	0	5	0	2	0	8	0
2	DF		Paul Telfer	31	0	20+1	0	2	0	2	0	5+1	0
3	DF		Mo Camara	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	DF		Lee Naylor	46	0	32	0	5	0	1	0	8	0
5	DF		Gary Caldwell	28	0	20+1	0	2	0	1	0	4	0
6	DF		Bobo Baldé[3]	10	0	6	0	0	0	2	0	2	0
7	FW		Maciej Żurawski	34	10	19+7	6	1	2	2	2	4+1	0
8	MF		Alan Thompson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	FW		Kenny Miller	44	8	20+11	4	4	1	1	0	5+3	3
10	FW		Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink	30	18	17+4	13	4	4	1	0	4	1
11	MF		Stephen Pearson	19	2	3+10	1	0	0	2	0	1+3	1
11	MF		Paul Hartley	14	0	10	0	4	0	0	0	0	0
12	DF		Mark Wilson	16	0	12	0	1	0	0	0	3	0
14	MF		Derek Riordan	21	7	6+10	4	3	3	2	0	0	0
15	MF		Evander Sno	28	1	7+11	1	3	0	2	0	5	0
16	MF		Thomas Gravesen	33	6	18+4	6	4	0	1	0	4+2	0
17	DF		Steven Pressley	18	2	14	1	4	1	0	0	0	0
18	MF		Neil Lennon	44	0	30+1	0	5	0	0	0	8	0
19	MF		Stilian Petrov	3	2	3	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
20	MF		Jiří Jarošík	34	5	18+7	4	2	0	1	0	3+3	1
21	GK		Mark Brown	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
22	GK		David Marshall	2	0	1+1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
23	DF		Stanislav Varga	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
24	DF		Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé[4]	5	1	3+1	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
25	MF		Shunsuke Nakamura	50	11	37	9	5	0	0	0	7+1	2
26	FW		Cillian Sheridan	2	0	0+1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
29	FW		Shaun Maloney	15	0	7+2	0	0	0	1	0	2+3	0
33	MF		Ross Wallace	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
35	MF		Paul Lawson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
37	FW		Craig Beattie	20	3	9+7	2	1	0	1	1	0+2	0
41	DF		John Kennedy	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
44	DF		Stephen McManus	44	2	31	2	4	0	1	0	8	0
45	MF		Jim O'Brien[5]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
46	MF		Aiden McGeady[6]	46	5	22+12	5	4	0	2	0	5+1	0
47	GK		Michael McGovern	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
48	DF		Darren O'Dea	21	3	9+5	2	3	1	1	0	2+1	0
49	DF		Scott Cuthbert	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
50	DF		Gary Irvine	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
51	MF		Nicky Riley	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
52	DF		Paul Caddis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
54	MF		Ryan Conroy	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
56	MF		Teddy Bjarnason	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

NB: Players with a zero in every column only appeared as unused substitutes

Goal scorers

R	Player	Scottish Premier League	Scottish League Cup	Scottish Cup	UEFA Champions League	Total
1	Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink	13	0	4	1	18
2	Shunsuke Nakamura	9	0	0	2	11
3	Maciej Żurawski	6	2	2	0	10
4	Kenny Miller	4	0	1	3	8
5	Derek Riordan	4	0	3	0	7
6	Thomas Gravesen	6	0	0	0	6
7	Jiří Jarošík	4	0	0	1	5
8	Darren O'Dea	2	0	1	0	3
	Craig Beattie	2	1	0	0	3
8	Stilian Petrov	2	0	0	0	2
	Stephen McManus	2	0	0	0	2
	Stephen Pearson	1	0	0	1	2
	Steven Pressley	1	0	1	0	2
9	Evander Sno	1	0	0	0	1
	Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé	0	0	1	0	1

Team statistics

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation[lower-alpha 1]
1	Celtic	38	26	6	6	65	34	+31	84	Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
2	Rangers	38	21	9	8	61	32	+29	72	Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round
3	Aberdeen	38	19	8	11	55	38	+17	65	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
4	Heart of Midlothian	38	17	10	11	47	35	+12	61
5	Kilmarnock	38	16	7	15	47	54	−7	55

Source: Scottish Professional Football League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
Notes:

1. Teams played each other three times (33 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last five matches.

Technical staff

Position	Staff
Manager	Gordon Strachan
Assistant Manager	Gary Pendrey
First Team Coach	Tommy Burns
Goalkeeping Coach	Jim Blyth
Head of Youth Academy	Tommy Burns
Head of Recruitment	John Park
Physiotherapist	Tim Williamson
Physiotherapist	Gavin McCarthy
Doctor	Derek McCormack
Head of Sports Science	Jim Henry

Last updated: 12 June 2017
Source:

Transfers

Player	From	Fee
Kenny Miller	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Free
Gary Caldwell	Hibernian	Free
Jiří Jarošík	Chelsea	£1,100,000
Evander Sno	Feyenoord	£80,000
Derek Riordan	Hibernian	£150,000
Lee Naylor	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£600,000
Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink	PSV Eindhoven	£3,400,000
Thomas Gravesen	Real Madrid	£2,000,000
Steven Pressley	Hearts	Free
Mark Brown	Inverness Caledonian Thistle	£300,000
Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé	Rennes	Loan
Paul Hartley	Hearts	£1,100,000

Out: 2006–07 Season

Player	To	Fee
Dion Dublin	Norwich City	Free
Sandy Wood	Forfar	Free
Roy Keane		Retired
John Hartson	West Brom	£500,000
Ross Harris	Dundee	Free
Mark Staunton	Charlton Athletic	Undisclosed
Mohammed Camara	Derby County	Free
Charlie Mulgrew	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Swap
Stilian Petrov	Aston Villa	£6,500,000
Stanislav Varga	Sunderland	£400,000
Ross Wallace	Sunderland	£400,000
Jacob Lensky	Feyenoord	Undisclosed
Stephen Pearson	Derby County	£750,000
Shaun Maloney	Aston Villa	£1,100,000

Total income: £7,830,000

Total spending: £9,650,000

Loans

Loaned out:

Player	To	Length
David Marshall	Norwich City	January to end of season
Paul McGowan	Morton	January to end of season
Paul Lawson	St Johnstone	January to end of season
Adam Virgo	Coventry City	Season long
Rocco Quinn	Kilmarnock	Season long
Michael Gardyne	Ross County	Season long
Gary Irvine	Ross County	Season long
Alan Thompson	Leeds United	Season loan
Diarmuid O'Carroll	Ross County	Season loan
James O'Brien	Dunfermline Athletic	Season loan

See also

• List of Celtic F.C. seasons

References

1. "Paddy Power pays out on Scottish Premier League title". Archived from the original on 22 January 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2009.
2. Colin Moffat, Kilmarnock 1-2 Celtic, BBC Sport, 22 April 2007
3. Baldé was born in Marseille, France.
4. Perrier-Doumbé was born in Paris, France.
5. O'Brien was born in Alexandria, Scotland.
6. McGeady was born in Glasgow, Scotland.