Adam Idah said it was an “amazing feeling” to score the only goal in the 90th minute as Celtic beat Rangers to add the Scottish Cup to their Premiership crown.
Norwich City loanee Idah pounced when Jack Butland headed Paulo Bernardo’s ball into his path, giving the Hoops their first Old Firm final since 2002.
“I said I will come here to try to score as many goals as I can,” the player told BBC Scotland. “I didn’t think I could score a goal like this in front of all these fans.
“It’s an amazing feeling. It’s hard to put into words. Anyone here can see what it means to the fans, to the players. I’ve always supported Celtic, it’s amazing.”
Off the bench and on the score sheet – Adam Idah just won @CelticFC i @scottishgas Scottish Men’s Cup 🤯#ScottishCup pic.twitter.com/eKDh0GlGQi
– Scottish Gas Scottish Cup (@ScottishCup) May 25, 2024
Rangers picked up a point from their four league games against Celtic in 2023/24 but the underdogs thought they had taken the lead when Abdallah Sima turned in a close corner in the 59th minute.
A VAR check saved Celtic, referee Nick Walsh adjudged goalkeeper Joe Hart to have been pushed back by Nico Raskin as the delivery went in.
Walsh is in charge of a growing offensive game and Rangers will have every reason to believe they should have won, although their wasteful finish dented their hopes.
The Gers won 3-2 with their winner in the 90th minute when the teams last met in the final in 2002.
“Rangers came with great motivation,” said Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers. “We knew there would be challenges in this game. It’s all about defining moments and we managed to get the winning goal because of that.
Award ceremony 🏆#ScottishCup pic.twitter.com/gnbzZdRDvk
– Scottish Gas Scottish Cup (@ScottishCup) May 25, 2024
“It’s a game that doesn’t need to be perfect. You just need to win and we did that in the end. We found the strength and the desire and the desire to keep pushing. Thanks, we found a winner.
“It was a good season, two wins. The problem is that when you win trophies, it becomes an expectation. That’s not a problem. You can’t take away what the Scottish Cup means to this club and our supporters.”
Republic of Ireland international Idah, who scored nine goals in 19 games after making his Rangers debut in February, said he did not know if he would completely kick his parent club out of the Championship.
“Football is hard,” he thought. “I love it here. I’ve said it before: it’s a big club but I still have a contract with Norwich. I’ll be back in the summer and who knows?”
