Celtic fans of this current generation have known nothing but success since Martin O’Neill first walked into Parkhead in 2000.
The Northern Irishman brought the club someunprecedented success both domestically and on the European scene as he reasserted Celtic’s place as the dominant club in Scottish football.
He also laid the groundwork for the Celtic we know today with managers like Gordon Strachan, Neil Lennon and Brendan Rodgers all doing their bit to add to the clubs’ historic achievements over the last two decades.
Celtic’s Scottish Cup win against Rangers this season was the club’s 63rd cup in our history and here, we rank ten of the best since the year 2000 in terms of importance of what it either meant historically or in terms of some of the best final memories for the Celtic support, with the Hampden final of this season first up.
10. Celtic 1 v 0 Rangers 2023/24 Scottish Cup
Celtic had to overcome a number of things during Brendan Rodgers’ first season back at the club. Injury problems, poor transfer business and losing Ange Postecoglou made the start of the season really unsettling for the team.
With Rangers hiring Philippe Clement, Rodgers also had to put up with negativity from the media and overconfidence from Ibrox as Rangers looked to end Celtic’s dominance.
After sealing the league title, Rodgers saw off Rangers at Hampden to ensure that Celtic remained unbeaten against our Glasgow rivals.
And after winning four out of five Glasgow Derbies, Celtic ended the season once again as the dominant force in Scottish football.
9. Celtic 2 v 1 Hibernian 2021/22 League Cup
Also known as The Kyogo Final, this cup win gave Ange Postecoglou his first-ever piece of silverware at Celtic.
Arriving at the club as a relatively unknown quantity, Postecoglou had to pick up the pieces of the COVID season that saw Celtic end a disastrous year trophy-less.
Scott Brown had left and Celtic lost top players like Odsonne Edouard, Kristoffer Ajer and Ryan Christie. After losing the first three of six games in the league, the pressure was on the Australian from the media.
This League Cup win was the springboard to Celtic winning the league back from Rangers and also laid the foundations for Postecoglou’s treble before he left the club in the summer of 2023.
8. Celtic 1 v 0 Dundee United 2004/05 Scottish Cup
The result doesn’t jump out as a game that would have brought much excitement but in the context of what it meant to Martin O’Neill, this Scottish Cup win was hugely significant.
The legendary manager had led Celtic to a treble and a European final and was set to leave Paradise at the end of this season.
Losing out on the league to Rangers by a single point and being knocked out of the League Cup in the quarter-final stage, O’Neill was in danger of ending his final season at Celtic trophy-less.
But Alan Thompson had other ideas and his 11th-minute strike was enough to ensure that O’Neill left Celtic with another winners medal round his neck.
7. Celtic 3 v 0 Aberdeen 2016/17 League Cup
In what could be argued as being one of the most memorable seasons of Celtic’s modern history, the Invincibles Treble was born on this day.
Brendan Rodgers was brought to Celtic after the disappointment of being knocked out of the Scottish Cup the previous season by a Rangers side stuck in the second-tier of Scottish football sunk in.
No one could have imagined the immediate impact the Northern Irishman could have add at the club as he led Celtic to their first ever Invincibles Treble.
Goals from Tom Rogic, James Forrest and Moussa Dembele sealed the League Cup win which was the first of three historic trophies and makes number seven on the list.
6. Celtic 2 v 1 Aberdeen 2016/17 Scottish Cup
If the League Cup of that season makes the list it is only right that the Scottish Cup does too. Celtic had to come from behind to confirm themselves as Invincible Treble heroes.
Going behind to a 9th-minute Jonny Hayes goal, Celtic hit back almost straight away through a Stuart Armstrong 11th minute equaliser.
In a cagey affair, it took until the 92nd minute where a piece of Tom Rogic magic (which will be spoken about for years to come) sealed the cup win and placed Rodgers and his team in the history books and labelled them as the true Celtic Invincibles.
5. Celtic 3 v 0 Kilmarnock 2000/01 League Cup
Back to the Martin O’Neill era and this win makes number five in the list.
O’Neill was smart when he first arrived at Celtic as he labelled Rangers as ‘the benchmark’ that the Parkhead club has to aspire to if they wanted to be successfull.
Trailing miles behind Rangers from the previous season, the final in March was won after Henrik Larsson scored a hattrick to destroy Kilmarnock to win the trophy that set Celtic up for their first treble since the Jock Stein era.
4. Celtic 1 v 0 Rangers 2019/20 League Cup
In what will be remembered as one of the most memorable cup finals in the Quadruple Treble era, this was supposed to be the year that Steven Gerrard halted the Celtic train.
Down to ten men after the sending off of Jeremie Frimpong, Celtic went on to lift the cup in a game frought with controversy.
Frimpong’s ordering off gifted Rangers a penalty which Fraser Forster promptly saved from Alfredo Morelos. The big Englishman put in an incredible performace to help keep our Glasgow rivals at bay.
However, with Celtic’s only shot on target, Christopher Jullien tucked away the winning goal to keep Celtic’s Quadruple Treble hopes on course and, as a bonus, reduce the Rangers players to tears.
3. Celtic 3 v 0 Hibernian 2000/01 Scottish Cup
Once again we revisit the Martin O’Neill era as a resurgent Celtic sought out a treble.
After overcoming Rangers in the league and Kilmarnock in the League Cup, all that stood between O’Neill joining the immortal Jock Stein as a treble winning manager was Hibs.
Jackie McNamara opened the scoring on the 39th minute with Henrik Larsson grabbing a double on the 48th and 80th minutes to ensure that O’Neill ended his first season at Celtic as the first treble-winning manager since the Lisbon Lions era.
2. Celtic 3 v 1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle 2022/23 Scottish Cup
We didn’t know it at the time (although it was heavily rumoured) the 2023 Scottish Cup would be Ange Postecoglou‘s last as the Celtic manager.
The Australian completely revolutionised the way Celtic played football and swept all before him in his final season at Paradise.
This cup win is significant as Celtic made history by becoming the first and only club to win eight domestic trebles in the history of the game.
Goals by Kyogo Furhashi, Liel Abada and Jota ensured that Postecoglou left Celtic a legend and with the well-wishes of the Hoops support as he embarked on his Premier League journey with Tottenham Hotspur.
1. Celtic 3 v 3 Hearts 2019/20 Scottish Cup (5-4 win on penalties)
This final is memorable for so many reasons. The first is that it was held behind closed doors due to the COVID pandemic and it was postponed from it’s usual summer billing to December the following year.
Celtic were on course for an historic Quadruple Treble and at one point Neil Lennon’s side were coasting as they went 2-0 up thanks to first-half goals from Ryan Christie and a cheeky Odsonne Edouard penalty.
Hearts made a brilliant second-half comeback to equal the scores to 2-2 and it seemed that an 105th minute extra-time goal by Leigh Griffiths was enough to win the cup.
However, Hearts had other ideas after Josh Ginnelly equalised in the 111th minute to send the game to penalties.
Ryan Christie missed Celtic’s third penalty and it looked like the treble dream was over. However, misses from Stephen Kingsley and young Craig Wighton meant Kristoffer Ajer‘s final penalty sealed the win and Celtic’s place in the history books as the first-ever team to win a four domestic trebles on the bounce.