Canadians in Europe: Johnston hands Celtic win
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A rare Alistair Johnston goal gave Celtic a win, while Theo Bair also scored in Scotland and Alphonso Davies scored a peach in a Bayern victory.
Here's a look at Canadians in Europe over the weekend.
Alistair Johnston, Celtic and Victor Loturi, Ross County - Alistair Johnston isn't known for scoring many goals, but the Vancouver native's marker on Saturday gave Celtic a key three points at home over Victor Loturi and Ross County as the Bhoys maintained their place atop the table. Johnston's goal came in just the first minute of action and even he will admit it wasn't the prettiest goal you'll ever see. Alexandro Bernabei broke down the left for the hosts, sending an inviting ball into the area for Liel Abada. His low drive was blocked, but it fell to Johnston just outside the box. Johnston's right-footed effort wasn't a sharp one, but it deflected off a pair of Staggies defenders and trickled past George Wickens, who frantically attempted to stop it from crossing the line. The goal was Johnston's first of the season and just his second in a Hoops shirt. As it turns out, that would be the only goal scored in what was a sloppy match. In the 28th, Celtic was awarded a penalty when Simon Murray was adjudged to have to taken down Callum McGregor in the area. A furious Murray shoved McGregor afterwards, accusing the Scotland midfielder of going down far too easily. Luis Palma stepped up to take, but his tame effort was easily turned aside by Wickens. It was the fourth stop of 10 Celtic penalty attempts this season. Still, the hosts managed to hang on for the win. "I need to see the time on the clock again,” Johnston said of his goal after the game. “It felt quick. I’ll take that. It wasn’t pretty, but none of mine ever will be. So getting one was nice as was getting the quick start which could have kickstarted a better result. But a clean sheet at home after scoring in the first minute, you can’t ask for more than that." Calgary's Loturi played a full 90 minutes in the loss. He finished his afternoon drawing three fouls, winning two tackles and making an interception.
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Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich - Alphonso Davies scored one of the prettier goals of his career on Saturday as Bayern Munich picked up a 3-2 away win over Augsburg to maintain their push at the top of the table. The visitors got on the board midway through the first half from a corner. Raphael Guerreiro's attempted flick-on for Kingsley Coman at the far post was knocked down by an Augsburg defender, but the ball fell to Aleksandar Pavlovic, who turned and fired from close range to make it 1-0 in the 23rd. Davies would make it two before the break in first-half stoppage. Leon Goretzka spotted his left-back cutting inside and found Davies, who quickly gathered a bit of space and sent in a low drive from distance past a diving Finn Dahmen. The goal was Davies' first of the season across all competitions and his seventh Bundesliga goal in six seasons. The hosts pulled one back shortly after the restart. Ermedin Demirovic leapt over Harry Kane to head home Kevin Mbabu's cross to make it 2-1 in the 52nd. Kane would atone for the defensive lapse only minutes later. Leroy Sane came down the right and found Jamal Musiala near the penalty spot. Instead of shooting, the Germany international simply squared up for the unmarked Kane to slot home his 23rd goal of the season. Augsburg immediately protested for offside, but replays showed that while Kane was offside, the ball was deflected off of Kristijan Jakic, making it a good goal. Augsburg would make things interesting late. In the 87th, the hosts were awarded a penalty from a corner after a VAR check showed that Manuel Neuer punched Felix Uduokhai in the back of the head while attempting a clearance. Like Kane atoning for an error before him, Neuer did the same in stopping Sven Michel's effort with a diving save. But Augsburg weren't done just yet. In the fourth minute of stoppage, Thomas Muller was adjudged to have fouled Demirovic in the area. While contact was minimal and the Bosnia and Herzegovina forward made a meal of the challenge, there was a foul. Demirovic took his own penalty and beat Neuer for his second goal of the game and to pull the hosts within one at 3-2. But that was as close as they would get. The win propelled Bayern up to 47 points, only two behind leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
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Theo Bair and Harry Paton, Motherwell - In a battle of teams leery of getting pulled into a relegation scrap, Ottawa's Theo Bair helped Motherwell earn a point against former club St. Johnstone on Saturday in Perth. The hosts got off to a quick start. As Graham Carey broke down the right, he was taken to ground by Paul McGinn and a foul was awarded. Matthew Smith's free kick was curled into the area and bundled around before being poked home by Ryan MacGowan in the third minute to make it 1-0. The visitors would even matters near the half-hour mark. From a Blair Spittal free kick, Bair headed past Dimitar Mitov to make it 1-1 in the 29th. Playing against his former side, Bair's celebration was understandably muted. The goal was Bair's sixth in 22 games this season, sextupling his output from his two seasons with the Saints. The match would finish on a 1-1 scoreline with both teams splitting the points and leaving both teams on 21 points for the season. Kitchener, Ont.'s Harry Paton played a full 90 minutes for the Steelmen, winning two tackles and drawing a foul.