'World-class' Duran fires Celtic to 3-0 first-leg rout of LASK

Celtic took a huge step towards a return to the Champions League on a stirring night at Celtic Park, downing Austrian side LASK 3-0 in the first leg of their play-off. At the heart of the demolition was summer signing Camilo Duran, whose two goals drew glowing praise from manager Martin O'Neill, who labelled the Colombian's display “world-class”.

Nygren opens the scoring

O'Neill's side ran riot on home soil, with Benjamin Nygren breaking the deadlock in the 26th minute. The Swede picked out the top-right corner with a stunning left-footed finish that set the tone for the evening.

Duran takes over

Duran doubled Celtic's advantage seven minutes before the interval with an equally sublime strike, crashing a fierce volley past LASK goalkeeper Lukas Jungwirth from 20 yards out. The 67th minute brought the pick of the bunch, as the Colombian rounded off a free-flowing team move with a side-footed shot that nestled into the roof of the net.

The forward, who has hit the ground running since joining Celtic from Qarabag, led all Celtic players for shots (six), touches in the opposition box (five) and dribbles (six).

O'Neill's verdict

O'Neill, however, was keen to temper expectations despite the margin of victory, taking time to applaud his new recruit while acknowledging the scale of the task that remains in next week's second leg.

“I thought it was a really tough evening for us. They are a really good side. We've got our work cut out, but we've given ourselves a chance,” O'Neill told TNT Sports.

“They scored a goal in the first minute, offside, and it took us 10-15 minutes to get into our stride. [Camilo Duran's] a brilliant player. We spotted him way back some time ago and tried to get him earlier than we did.

“I'm not saying he was a world-class player, but that was a world-class performance, taking people on and getting back.

“It was a great result for us tonight, but there is a long way to go.

“Last season, for most of it, you were wondering where a goal might come from. Here, we are able to conjure goals. Keeping a clean sheet was very important for us as well.”

McGregor calls for focus

Celtic captain Callum McGregor echoed his manager's caution, with the tie still only half settled ahead of the trip to Austria.

“We are trying to get the club in the Champions League. Only halfway there but a fantastic performance. We have to finish it off next week,” McGregor said.

“The group is good and doing well. We are always trying to work and get better. The confidence grows; it's only halfway.

“It's our job to create the atmosphere and bring happiness.

“It was important we try to strengthen. It's small steps, and we have a really tough game next week.”

Work still to do

The result gives Celtic a commanding lead heading into the return leg, with O'Neill's men on the verge of returning to Europe's top table for the first time since 2024-25, having lost in the play-offs last season. Celtic will now travel to Austria hoping to avoid a complete collapse, a year on from losing to Kairat Almaty on penalties following back-to-back goalless draws.

The underlying numbers, however, offer a note of warning. Despite winning 3-0, Celtic finished with an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.87 from their 17 shots compared to LASK's 1.75 from 20 attempts at Viljami Sinisalo's goal. O'Neill will be wary of the threat the visitors still possess before the tie is settled.