Scottish Cup: Iheanacho wins 2nd Celtic trophy in 7 days

Scottish Cup: Iheanacho wins 2nd Celtic trophy in 7 days

Kelechi Iheanacho has lifted his second major trophy in just seven days after Celtic’s commanding 3-1 victory over Dunfermline Athletic in the Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park.

This latest triumph follows closely on the heels of the Hoops securing the Scottish Premiership title the previous weekend with an exciting 3-1 win against Hearts.

Despite his strong recent performances, the 29-year-old Super Eagles star started the final on the bench but came in to score the third goal of the encounter.

However, his contributions leading up to the final were vital for Martin O’Neill’s squad, highlighted by a brilliant substitute appearance in the semi-finals where the Nigerian international netted two goals in a 6-2 routing of St. Mirren.

Though his debut season in Scotland was plagued by persistent hamstring injuries, the former Manchester City star still delivered an impressive nine goals in 24 appearances across all competitions.

Joining as a free agent last summer on a one-year deal (with an option for an extension), Iheanacho’s goals proved to be incredibly high-value.

His clutch performances against Kilmarnock, Dundee, Hibernian, and Motherwell directly secured eight crucial points for Celtic, officially making him the highest-scoring Nigerian player in the club’s history.

With this victory, Celtic bounced back from last year’s heartbreaking penalty shootout loss to Aberdeen, capturing their 43rd Scottish Cup and further sealing their status as the most successful club in the tournament’s history.

While underdogs Dunfermline Athletic put together an admirable cup run by upsetting teams like Aberdeen and Hibernian, their late-season dip in form ultimately left them exposed against a rampant Celtic side coming off an eight-game winning streak.

Coming into the Cup final, Daizen Maeda opened the scoring in the 19th minute before Arne Engels doubled the hosts’ advantage nine minutes before the break.

The Hoops remained in control throughout the second half, and substitute Iheanacho put the game beyond doubt in the 73rd minute with a well-taken third goal.

 He was introduced in the 58th minute as a replacement for James Forrest and needed just 15 minutes to make a significant impact.

After receiving a perfectly timed through pass from Benjamin Nygren, he surged past two Dunfermline defenders, rounded the goalkeeper, and calmly slotted home his side’s third goal.

Dunfermline grabbed a late consolation through Josh Cooper in the 80th minute, but it did little to spoil another dominant victory for the Celts.