St Johnstone will be “fearless” as they seek to make a heroic victory over Celtic the spark for Premiership survival, according to boss, Simo Valakari.
Many thought the final nail had been hammered into their coffin as a result of Dundee and Kilmarnock both winning on Saturday.
However, Valakari’s side produced the biggest shock result of the season, with a 52-point gap between top and bottom of the table being bridged.
The Finn was understandably proud of his team’s display, with Daniels Balodis scoring an early winner.
And he saw from the moment that the Perth players arrived at McDiarmid Park that they were in the right frame of mind to show that there is still life left in the basement battle.
“We needed the points especially after the results yesterday,” said Valakari.
“We can’t do anything about that – we just went out today knowing we had to get something to make sure we give ourselves a chance.
“In a relegation battle you need these results, winning games nobody expects you to.
“We said it before the game among ourselves, football is crazy sometimes.
“We needed something unexpected to happen and it happened today.
“We go fearless because everyone has written us off, especially with the gap the way it was this morning.
“We were frank with ourselves during the week – we said we might walk into McDiarmid Park at 10.30 on Sunday morning with the gap bigger.
“So, we prepared ourselves for that. The players walked in with our chests up and showed it on the field.
“We didn’t perform against Hibs but I knew we’d do better.
“Can we stay up? Of course – the fight continues.
“We have six games left and will it be easy? No, we are big favourites to go down.
“But we do our work and today we were so good. So, let’s see what happens.”
One stand didn’t matter
Valakari was as pleased for the supporters as the players.
“Before the match it was all about the stadium being full of Celtic fans,” he said. “But out there it felt like the whole stadium was ours.
“They were amazing.
“We had one stand, big noise and they showed who the home team was.
“I am very proud.
“We were hurting after last weekend. People said a lot of things about the kind of team we are.
“We frustrated them, got a little rub of the green when we needed it.
“And Andy Fisher made some world class saves and that’s what you need in games like this.”
Brendan Rodgers was disappointed in his own team’s performance but started his post-match media conference by praising the victors.
“I want to give huge credit to St Johnstone,” he said. “They fought for every ball. We have no excuses.”
Zach Mitchell has been a shining light for Saints of late – quick across the ground and a reliable passer.
He was nearly caught out just 40 seconds into the contest, though, when the on-loan Charlton man was dispossessed on the edge of his own box and Arne Engels forced a save out of Fisher.
Valakari picked an attacking line-up for the game and Saints were able to launch a couple of attacks in the opening stages.
From one of those, Balodis headed a Makenzie Kirk cross over the bar.
It proved to be a useful practice exercise.
Early goal
When Graham Carey delivered an in-swinging free-kick to the near post, the Latvian international glanced the ball into the net to give Saints a shock fourth-minute lead.
Stephen Duke-McKenna was heavily involved in the action at both ends.
One minute he was preventing a certain tap-in goal with a goal line intervention from a Daizen Maeda shot that turned into a cross.
Then the next he was trying his luck with a dipping long-range shot on the angle that Viljami Sinisalo tipped round the post at full stretch.
Preserving their slender lead was always going to be a tough task for Saints given the variety and quality of their opponents’ attacking options.
The last thing they could afford to do was shoot themselves in the foot.
Sam Curtis nearly did just that when he was short with a back pass and Maeda anticipated the error. Thankfully for Curtis, Fisher saved the Celtic striker’s shot.
There was a VAR check for a handball penalty against Reo Hatate when he was falling backwards as he blocked a Carey cross just before the break. Referee David Dickinson didn’t get sent to check his pitchside monitor, however.
Saints did get a corner, mind you. From it, Adama Sidibeh rose highest and made a good connection with his header but directed it straight at Sinisalo.
Half-time lead
Valakari’s men got to half-time deserving of their half-time lead.
That advantage was nearly wiped out 10 minutes into the second half when Hatate hit the near post with a sweetly struck shot from a short corner.
Saints made a quadruple change midway through the half.
Carey, Sidibeh, Kirk and Drey Wright were the men to come off – the last of those with an ankle injury which saw him leave the ground on crutches – and on came Nicky Clark, Sven Sprangler, Benji Kimpioka and Taylor Steven.
Kimpioka squandered a good counter-attacking opportunity but by this point in the game it was very much a case of Celtic’s attack versus Saints’ defence.
Fisher produced the best save of the game to thwart substitute James Forrest from close range and another one in stoppage time from Luke McCowan.
But Celtic couldn’t find a way past him and Saints had earned a win that was as precious as it was unexpected.
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