Celtic stroll in Budapest
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Article summary
MTK Hungária FC 0-4 Celtic FC Celtic are virtually through after a four-star display.
Article body
Larsson sets new record
Swedish striker Henrik Larsson, who took his European tally to 31 to create a new British scoring record, steered the ball over MTK goalkeeper Zoltan Vegh to open the floodgates. Goals from Didier Agathe, Stilian Petrov and Chris Sutton followed to put last season's beaten UEFA Cup finalists on course for a place in the lucrative group stage of the tournament.
Agathe slots home
Agathe and Petrov controlled the game for long spells and both were involved in the move which put Martin O'Neill's side two goals in front. Sutton, who started in place of Shaun Maloney, fought off two defenders before sending a deflected shot into the path of Agathe, who had the simple task of slotting home.
Match interrupted
The match was bizarrely held up for four minutes in the second half when a sprinkler went off in the middle of the pitch. But the unscheduled shower failed to dampen the Celtic spirits as the Bhoys increased their advantage through Petrov after a fierce shot from Alan Thompson was blocked.
O'Neill delighted
Sutton completed the victory in the dying minutes, when he steered home a Larsson cross. Celtic manager Martin O'Neill said afterwards: "We've got a great chance now."
