Kyogo is spot-on as Celts kick off pre-season with draw against Ayr United | OneFootball

Pre-season friendlyFriday, July 5, 2024Somerset Park, Ayr

AYR UNITED… 1(Dowds 34pen)

CELTIC… 1(Kyogo 24pen)

Celtic kicked off the first of five pre-season matches with a 1-1 draw against Ayr United at Somerset Park on Friday night.

Both goals came from the penalty spot. Kyogo put the Hoops ahead in the first-half, converting the penalty after Odin Holm had been brought down in the box. But that was cancelled out when Anton Dowds netted an equaliser.

The friendly match, which heralded the opening of a new stand at Somerset Park, also saw Scott Brown in the Ayr United dugout facing his former team, and the Celtic legend received the warmest of welcomes from the travelling Celtic support.

With many of Brendan Rodgers’ first-team regulars still to report back after their international exertions, it was a youthful squad that took on the Championship side.

But it was one of the Hoops’ top stars of the past few seasons who opened the scoring on 24 minutes.

Kyogo coolly slotted the ball into the net following a foul on Odin Holm to put Celtic ahead, but that lead only lasted 10 minutes before the home side grabbed an equaliser, also from the spot.

On a night when the Celtic manager made a whole raft of changes to give his squad their first run-out of the summer, there were to be no further goals in the game, although young Celtic keeper, Josh Clarke, who spent part of last season on loan at Ayr, produced a number of good saves to deny the home side a goal in the second-half.

Celtic, for their part, had efforts from Oh and also Mitchel Frame without really troubling the Ayr United keeper.

Next up for Brendan Rodgers’ side in a game against Queen’s Park before they head to the United States for matches against Chelsea, Manchester City and MLS side, DC United.

CELTIC: Bain, Dede, Welsh, Nawrocki, Kobayashi, Tomoki, Ure, Holm, Kuhn, Kyle, Kyogo.Subs: Oluwayemi, Clarke, Yang, Oh, Kwon, Lawal, Frame, Murray, Agbaire, Bonnar, Donovan, Hatton