Celtic F.C. season 2004-05

Celtic started season 2004-05 looking to win the Scottish Premier League trophy and retain the Scottish FA Cup. They also competeed in the Scottish League Cup, and entered the Champions League at the group stage.

In the race for the SPL title, Celtic recorded a record seventh straight win over city rivals Rangers. However, as the season drew to a close, with Rangers closely following, the club extended their lead at the top of the SPL table to two points as they lined up for the final game of the season. A win at Motherwell required to seal the title.

With two minutes remaining on the clock, Celtic were leading 1-0; a result which would have handed them the league. However, Motherwell's Scott McDonald (who later signed for and is currently playing for Celtic) netted two last-minute goals. Rangers defeated Hibernian 1-0 at Easter Road, thereby winning the league championship title and leaving Celtic in second position. Celtic ended the season one week later with a 1-0 win over Dundee United in the Scottish Cup Final, which was marked by fans as Martin O'Neill's final match as manager.

On 25 May, 2005, O'Neill announced he would resign as manager of Celtic at the end of 2004-05 season along with first team coach Steve Walford and assistant manager John Robertson. It was widely reported that O'Neill decided to take time out of football in order to care for his ailing wife, who was ill with lymphoma. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/4572091.stm BBC SPORT | Football | My Club | Celtic | Strachan in for O'Neill at Celtic ] ]

Transfers

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Results

Results for Celtic F.C. for season 2004-2005.

NOTE: scores are written Celtic first

Key:
*SPL = Scottish Premier League
*SC = Scottish Cup
*SLC = Scottish League Cup
*CLF - Champions League Group F
*CL = Champions League Match
*F = Friendly match

References