Celtic missed out on the chance to secure a domestic treble on Saturday after they lost on penalties to Aberdeen at Hampden Park in the final of the SFA Cup.
The Hoops had already won the Scottish Premiership and the League Cup earlier this term, but they failed to make it three out of three with a win over the Dons.
Captain Callum McGregor, who lost his first-ever domestic final with the club, and right-back Alistair Johnston both missed from the spot to hand Aberdeen the win.
Why Kasper Schmeichel will be disappointed
McGregor and Johnston were not the only players to blame for Celtic not winning the SFA Cup, though, as the game only went to penalties in the first place because it was a draw in regulation time.
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Kasper Schmeichel will be particularly disappointed with the role that he played in Aberdeen’s equaliser, after an own goal from Alfie Dorrington had put the Hoops ahead.
The Danish titan tried to anticipate where the cross was going to land by diving out into the box to palm the ball away, only to inadvertently palm the ball backwards and into his own net for an own goal.
Schmeichel was given a 6/10 player rating by 67HailHail, who described his part in the equaliser as a ‘rare, but terrible, mistake’ from the goalkeeper.
The veteran goalkeeper, however, was not the player who ultimately cost Celtic the treble, because Daizen Maeda had the chance to make up for the shot-stopper’s mistake in the dying embers of injury time.
Why Daizen Maeda cost Celtic the treble
The Japan international cost Brendan Rodgers the treble with his huge miss in injury time at the end of the 90 minutes, as he raced clear through on goal with a chance to make it 2-1.
Aberdeen would have had very, very, little time to find an equaliser had the forward taken his chance, but he fired a fairly tame effort at Dimitar Mitov after going through for a one-on-one opportunity.
Maeda, who BBC commentator Liam McLeod stated “reminds you of a wasp” because of his buzzing presence as a pressing forward, worked ever so hard during the game to close down defenders and make life difficult for Aberdeen.
However, the striker, who was given a 5/10 player rating and dubbed ‘wasteful’ by 67HailHail, let his side down in the crucial moment with a huge miss that ultimately cost Celtic the treble.
Appearances
34
Goals
16
Big chances missed
17
Conversion rate
28%
Goals from shots inside the box
16/55
Goals from shots outside the box
0/2
As you can see in the table above, Maeda’s finishing has been fairly inconsistent throughout the season, with more ‘big chances’ missed than goals scored in the league, so his miss at Hampden Park may not have come as the biggest surprise.
He was worse than Schmeichel, though, because the striker had the opportunity to seal the game and atone for the goalkeeper’s mistake by scoring his huge chance, and failed to do so.
Celtic have been backed to make stunning move for 20 y/o "superstar"
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ByHenry JacksonMay 24, 2025
There is no doubt that Maeda had a phenomenal campaign, scoring 33 goals in all competitions, and it is a shame that it has come to an end on a bit of a sour note with that performance that cost Rodgers a first domestic treble since returning to Parkhead.