1996–97 Celtic F.C. season

Celtic
1996–97 season
Chairman	Fergus McCann
Manager	Tommy Burns ; (until 2 May); Billy Stark ; (caretaker)
Ground	Celtic Park ; Glasgow, Scotland ; (capacity: 60,355)
Scottish Premier Division	2nd
Scottish Cup	Semi-finals
Scottish League Cup	Quarter-finals
UEFA Cup	First round
Top goalscorer	League: Jorge Cadete (25); All: Jorge Cadete (33)
Home colours	Away colours
	← 1995–96 1997–98 →

Last updated February 20, 2024

The 1996-97 season was the 103rd season of competitive football by Celtic.

Pre-season and friendlies

Win Draw Loss Postponed

23 July 1996 Friendly	VV Reünie	0 – 16	Celtic	Borculo, Netherlands
19:00 CEST		Match Report	Cadete 21', 22', 55', 61', 72', 85' Hooijdonk 11', 49' (pen.) Di Canio 48', 60', 76', 87' McLaughlin 15' Thom 87'	Stadium: Sportcomplex De Wildbaan Referee: J. Floors

24 July 2014 Friendly	GSV Gouda	0 – 8	Celtic	Gouda, Netherlands
19:00 CEST		Match Report	Donnelly 29' Thom 33' Wieghorst 36' Cadete 66' Grant 67' McLaughlin 76' Hooijdonk 80', 89'	Referee: Mario van Der Ende

26 July 2014 Friendly	V.V. Veere	1 – 9	Celtic	Veere, Netherlands
19:00 CEST	Gladdines 47'	Match Report	Hooijdonk 2' O'Donnell 9', 10' Cadete McLaughlin Thom 89' Hooijdonk 2'	Stadium: Sportpark Bieweg Referee: W Vermeulen

27 July 1996 Friendly	SC Halsteren	0 – 3	Celtic	Halesteren, Netherlands
19:00 GMT		Match Report	van Hooijdonk 8' Stubbs 14' van Hooijdonk 60' (pen.)	Stadium: Sportpark De Beek Attendance: Unknown Referee: M. Koopman

29 July 1996 Friendly	Berkum Thuis	1 – 8	Celtic	Zwolle, Netherlands
19:45 GMT	Kouwen 19'	Match Report	Di Canio 5' Thom 16' Di Canio 27' Thom 35' Cadete 46' Di Canio 60' Thom 63' Hughes 86'	Stadium: Sportpark De Vegtlust Attendance: Unknown Referee: B. Slot

31 July 1996 Friendly	Celtic	2 – 1	Arsenal	Glasgow, Scotland
19:45 GMT	Donnelly 83' O'Donnell 89'	Match Report	Dixon 25'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 47,300 Referee: R. Tait

3 August 1996 Friendly	Celtic	2 – 2	Sporting Lisbon	Glasgow, Scotland
15:00 GMT	Cadete 40' Donnelly 60'	Match Report	Filipe 80' Hughes 82' (o.g.)	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 42,400 Referee: Kenny Clark

26 November 1996 Friendly	Celtic	0 – 1	Barcelona	Glasgow, Scotland
19:45 GMT		Match Report	Óscar García 20'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 26,623 Referee: J McCluskey

Season Summary

Once again, the season saw a very close title race between the two Old Firm teams. Celtic consistently remained second, only topping the table for a few days at the start of November, but stayed hot on the heels of Rangers, usually only being a couple of points behind them, and sometimes only by goal difference. However, points dropped on consecutive weekends in late November and early December saw the gap increase. Both sides endured turbulent runs of form in March, the pressure of the "Nine In A Row" - one seeking to achieve it, the other stopping it - telling. Following a 1-0 victory at Celtic Park during the final meeting of the two that season Rangers pulled decisively ahead in the title race, and this led to the dismissal of manager Tommy Burns three games before the end of the season.

Competitions

Scottish Premier Division

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Rangers (C)	36	25	5	6	85	33	+52	80	Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round
2	Celtic	36	23	6	7	78	32	+46	75	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first qualifying round ^{[lower-alpha 1]}
3	Dundee United	36	17	9	10	46	33	+13	60
4	Heart of Midlothian	36	14	10	12	46	43	+3	52
5	Dunfermline Athletic	36	12	9	15	52	65	−13	45

Source: Soccerbase
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions
Notes:

↑ As the League Cup winners Rangers had qualified for European competition via their league position, the place in the UEFA Cup was passed to the next highest placed team in the league, Dundee United.

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36
Ground	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	A	A	A	H	A	H	H
Result	D	W	W	W	W	W	L	W	D	W	W	L	D	L	W	W	W	L	W	W	W	W	W	W	L	W	W	W	L	L	D	D	W	W	D	W
Position	4	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	1	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2

Source: Competitive matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

10 August 1996 Premier League	Aberdeen	2 – 2	Celtic	Aberdeen
15:00 GMT	Windass 74' (pen) Shearer 80'	Match Report	Hooijdonk 28' Thom 90'	Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 18,500 Referee: Hugh Dallas

17 August 1996 Premier League	Celtic	4 – 1	Raith Rovers	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Hooijdonk 16' Thom 25'50' Donnelly 87'	Match Report	Duffield 67'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 47,200 Referee: Sandy Roy

24 August 1996 Premier League	Kilmarnock	1 – 3	Celtic	Kilmarnock
15:00 GMT	Reilly 27'	Match Report	Di Canio 61' Thom 64' Cadete 89'	Stadium: Rugby Park Attendance: 15,900 Referee: Ian Taylor

7 September 1996 Premier League	Celtic	5 – 0	Hibernian	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Pat McGinlay 4' (o.g.) Cadete 14'45' O'Neil 51' Hooijdonk 72'	Match Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 47,042 Referee: J Rowbotham

14 September 1996 Premier League	Dundee United	1 – 2	Celtic	Dundee, Scotland
15:00 GMT	McSwegan 87'	Match Report	Hooijdonk 45' Malky MacKay 90'	Stadium: Tannadice Park Attendance: 12,152 Referee: W Crombie

21 September 1996 Premier League	Celtic	5 – 1	Dunfermline Athletic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Cadete 32' Di Canio 35'41' Hooijdonk 72'89'	Match Report	Britton 65'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 50,032 Referee: Clyde

28 September 1996 Premier League	Rangers	2 – 0	Celtic	Glasgow, Scotland
15:00 GMT	Gough 51' Gascoigne 89'	Match Report		Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 50,124 Referee: W Young

12 October 1996 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Motherwell	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Hooijdonk 90'	Match Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 49,422 Referee: R Orr

20 September 1996 Premier League	Hearts	2 – 2	Celtic	Edinburgh, Scotland
15:00 GMT		Match Report		Stadium: Tynecastle Stadium Attendance: 13,352

26 September 1996 Premier League	Hibernian	0 – 4	Celtic	Edinburgh, Scotland
15:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Easter Road Stadium Attendance: 13,930

2 November 1996 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Aberdeen	Glasgow
15:00 GMT		Match Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 50,124

14 November 1996 Premier League	Celtic	0 – 1	Rangers	Glasgow
15:00 GMT		Match Report	Laudrup 8'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 50,009

30 November 1996 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 2	Hearts	Glasgow
15:00 GMT		Match Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 49,804

7 December 1996 Premier League	Motherwell	2 – 1	Celtic	Motherwell, Scotland
15:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 11,589

21 December 1996 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Dundee United	Glasgow
15:00 GMT		Match Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 46,483

26 December 1996 Premier League	Aberdeen	1 – 2	Celtic	Aberdeen, Scotland
15:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 16,748

28 December 1996 Premier League	Celtic	4 – 2	Dunfermline Athletic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT		Match Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 45,751

2 January 1997 Premier League	Rangers	3 – 1	Celtic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 50,019

4 January 1997 Premier League	Celtic	5 – 0	Motherwell	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 45,259

8 January 1997 Premier League	Celtic	6 – 0	Kilmarnock	Glasgow
19:45 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 45,535

11 January 1997 Premier League	Hearts	1 – 2	Celtic	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Tynecastle Park Attendance: 15,424

14 January 1997 Premier League	Raith Rovers	1 – 2	Celtic	Kirkcaldy
19:45 GMT				Stadium: Stark's Park Attendance: 8,544

18 January 1997 Premier League	Celtic	4 – 1	Hibernian	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 48,986

29 January 1997 Premier League	Dunfermline Athletic	0 – 2	Celtic	Dunfermline
19:45 GMT				Stadium: East End Park Attendance: 17,919

1 February 1997 Premier League	Dundee United	1 – 0	Celtic	Dundee
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Tannadice Park Attendance: 12,483

6 February 1997 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 0	Raith Rovers	Glasgow
19:45 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 44,770

22 February 1997 Premier League	Motherwell	0 – 1	Celtic	Motherwell
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 12,131

1 March 1997 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 0	Hearts	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 49,578

11 March 1997 Premier League	Kilmarnock	2 – 0	Celtic	Kilmarnock
19:45 GMT				Stadium: Rugby Park Attendance: 15,087

16 March 1997 Premier League	Celtic	0 – 1	Rangers	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 49,733

22 March 1997 Premier League	Dunfermline Athletic	2 – 2	Celtic	Dunfermline
15:00 GMT				Stadium: East End Park Attendance: 13,092

5 April 1997 Premier League	Raith Rovers	1 – 1	Celtic	Kirkcaldy
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Stark's Park Attendance: 7,914

20 April 1997 Premier League	Celtic	3 – 0	Aberdeen	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 46,989

4 May 1997 Premier League	Hibernian	1 – 3	Celtic	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 10,546

7 May 1997 Premier League	Celtic	0 – 0	Kilmarnock	Glasgow
19:45 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 42,788

10 May 1997 Premier League	Celtic	3 – 0	Dundee United	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 46,742

Scottish League Cup

13 August 1996 Second round	Clyde	1 - 3	Celtic	Cumbernauld
20:00 GMT	Brown 74'	Report	Cadete 11'67' Thom 87'	Stadium: Broadwood Stadium Attendance: 8,000 Referee: J Fleming

4 September 1996 Third round	Alloa	1 - 5	Celtic	Alloa
20:00 GMT	McAneney 48'	Report	Thom 41' Cadete 51'62'72' Hooijdonk 54' (pen)	Stadium: Recreation Park, Alloa Attendance: 12,582 Referee: S Dougal

17 September 1996 Quarter Finals	Hearts	1 - 0 (a.e.t.)	Celtic	Edinburgh
20:00 GMT	Robertson 110'	Report		Stadium: Tynecastle Stadium Attendance: 14,442 Referee: K Clark

Scottish Cup

26 January 1997 Third round	Clydebank	0 - 5	Celtic	Glasgow
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Firhill Park Attendance: 16,285 Referee: J Rowbotham

17 February 1997 Fourth round	Hibernian	1 - 1	Celtic	Edinburgh
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 16,000 Referee: W Young

26 February 1997 Fourth round replay	Celtic	2 - 0	Hibernian	Glasgow
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 46,424 Referee: W Young

6 March 1997 Quarter-finals	Celtic	2 - 0	Rangers	Glasgow
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 49,519 Referee: J McCluskey

12 April 1997 Semi-finals	Celtic	1 - 1	Falkirk	Glasgow
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 45,261 Referee: Willie Young

23 April 1997 Semi-final replay	Falkirk	1 - 0	Celtic	Glasgow
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 35,879 Referee: Willie Young

UEFA Cup

6 August 1996 Qualifying round 1st leg	Košice	0 - 0	Celtic	Košice
20:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Štadión Lokomotívy v Čermeli Attendance: 16,000 Referee: Konrad Plautz

20 August 1996 Qualifying round 2nd leg	Celtic	1 - 0 (1 – 0 agg.)	Košice	Glasgow
20:00 GMT	Cadete 88'	Report		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 44,448 Referee: J Hireiniemi

10 September 1996 First round 1st leg	Celtic	0 - 2	Hamburger SV	Glasgow
20:00 GMT		Report	Baron 2' Schupp 71'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 45,400 Referee: Pierluigi Collina

24 September 1996 First round2nd leg	Hamburger SV	2 - 0 (4 – 0 agg.)	Celtic	Hamburg
19:45 GMT	Baron 24' Breitenreiter 50'	Report		Stadium: Volksparkstadion Attendance: 29.600 Referee: V Schuk

Statistics

Disciplinary record

Includes all competitive matches. Players listed below made at least one appearance for Celtic first squad during the season.

N	P	Nat.	Name									Notes
N	P	Nat.	Name	League	Europe		League Cup		Scottish Cup	Total		Notes
5	DF		Alan Stubbs						3	3
17	MF		Morten Wieghorst
1	GK		Gordon Marshall
18	DF		Malky Mackay		1	1				1	1
5	DF		Stuart Gray
5	DF		Enrico Annoni						1	1
10	FW		Phil O'Donnell
11	FW		Simon Donnelly
16	DF		John Hughes		1	1	1			2	1
2	DF		Tom Boyd				1			1
9	FW		Pierre Van Hooijdonk				1			1
7	MF		Paolo Di Canio				1		1	2
11	FW		Jorge Cadete
14	MF		Brian O'Neil
3	DF		Tosh McKinlay						1	1
33	DF		Peter Grant				1	1		1	1
4	DF		Jackie McNamara						1	1
42	MF		Paul McStay
42	MF		Brian McLaughlin
10	FW		Andreas Thom				1			1

Last updated: 22 July 2014
Source: Competitive matches
Ordered by , and
= Number of bookings; = Number of sending offs after a second yellow card; = Number of sending offs by a direct red card.

Transfers

Transfers in

No.	Pos.	Name	Age	EU	Moving from	Type	Transfer window	Ends	Transfer fee	Source
7	FW	Paolo Di Canio	28	EU	AC Milan	Transfer	Summer	1998	£3M
6	DF	Alan Stubbs	24	EU	Bolton Wanderers	Transfer	Summer	1998	£3M
16	MF	David Hannah	23	EU	Dundee United	Transfer	Summer	1998	£0.65M
17	DF	Enrico Annoni	30	EU	Roma	Transfer	Winter	1999	£0.3M	Source
33	DF	John Convery	16	EU	Glenavon	Transfer	Winter	1998	Free	Source
12	FW	Tommy Johnson	26	EU	Aston Villa	Transfer	Winter	1998	£2.4M

Total spending: £8.85 million

Players out

N	Pos.	Name	Age	EU	Moving to	Type	Transfer window	Transfer fee	Source
1	DF	Mike Galloway	31	EU		Retirement	Summer	Free	Source
4	DF	Rudi Vata	27	EU	Apollon Limassol	Transfer	Summer	Free	Source
11	MF	John Collins	28	EU	A.S. Monaco	Transfer	Summer	Bosman	Source
2	DF	Lee Martin	28	EU	Bristol Rovers	Transfer	Summer	Free	Source
	DF	John Hughes	32	EU	Hibernian	Transfer	Mid-Season	£250K
	MF	Declan Boyle	22	EU	Derry City	Transfer	Winter	£20K	Source
9	FW	Pierre Van Hooijdonk	27	EU	Nottingham Forest	Transfer	Mid-Season	£3M

Total income: £3.22 million

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[table_note_res_UC0.41080394778904-1] As the League Cup winners Rangers had qualified for European competition via their league position, the place in the UEFA Cup was passed to the next highest placed team in the league, Dundee United.

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