1987–88 Celtic F.C. season

Celtic 1987–88 football season

Celtic

1987–88 season

Chairman

Jack McGinn

Manager

Billy McNeill

Ground

Celtic Park
Glasgow, Scotland

Scottish Premier Division

1st (champions)

Scottish League Cup

Quarter final

UEFA Cup

First round

Scottish Cup

Winners

Top goalscorer

League:
Andy Walker (26)
All:
Andy Walker (32)

Highest home attendance

61,927 vs Dundee (23 April 1988)^[1]

Lowest home attendance

11,381 vs Falkirk (28 October 1987)^[1]

Average home league attendance

33,199^[1]

Home colours

← 1986–87

1988–89 →

The 1987–88 season was Celtic's 94th season of competitive football, and also marked the club's centenary. Davie Hay was dismissed as manager in the close season following the team's failure to win any trophies during season 1986–87. Billy McNeill returned as manager, following four years in England with Manchester City and Aston Villa.^[2]

The playing squad saw a large turnaround in the summer of 1987, with Brian McClair, Mo Johnston, Murdo MacLeod and Alan McInally all leaving. Danny McGrain was given a free transfer and Davie Provan retired due to ill health.^[2] Centre-half Mick McCarthy was signed by Davie Hay a few days prior to his sacking.^[2] Billy McNeill then went on to sign Motherwell striker Andy Walker, Sheffield Wednesday full-back Chris Morris and Aberdeen midfielder Billy Stark over the summer.^[3] As the season progressed, forwards Frank McAvennie and Joe Miller were also signed.^[4]

Celtic made a strong start to their league campaign, and went on to win their 34th league championship title. During the autumn, Celtic were knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Borussia Dortmund and the Scottish League Cup by Aberdeen. Celtic reached the Scottish Cup Final having come from behind against Hearts in the semi-final, scoring twice in the final four minutes to win 2–1.^[5] Celtic again went a goal down in the final against Dundee United, but came back to win, Frank McAvennie scoring the winning goal in the last minute to clinch a league and cup double.^[6]

Competitions

Scottish Premier Division

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Celtic (C)	44	31	10	3	79	23	+56	72	Qualification for the European Cup first round
2	Heart of Midlothian	44	23	16	5	74	32	+42	62	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3	Rangers	44	26	8	10	85	34	+51	60
4	Aberdeen	44	21	17	6	56	25	+31	59
5	Dundee United	44	16	15	13	54	47	+7	47	Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round

Source: Statto
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Matches

Morton v Celtic

8 August 1987 Premier League	Morton	0 – 4	Celtic	Greenock
15:00		Sunday Mail	McGhee 13' Stark 53' Walker 61' 68'	Stadium: Cappielow Park Attendance: 14,174

Celtic v Hearts

12 August 1987 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Hearts	Glasgow
19:30	McGhee 87'	Daily Record		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 27,825

Celtic v Motherwell

15 August 1987 Premier League	Celtic	4 – 1	Motherwell	Glasgow
15:00	McGhee 31' Walker 36' 82' Stark 78'	The Sunday Post	Kirk 74'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 24,478

Dunfermline Athletic v Celtic

22 August 1987 Premier League	Dunfermline Athletic	2 – 1	Celtic	Dunfermline
15:00	Robertson 2' Ferguson 57'	Sunday Mail	Walker 33' (pen)	Stadium: East End Park Attendance: 17,292

Celtic v Rangers

29 August 1987 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Rangers	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Stark 4'	Sunday Mail		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 60,178

Dundee United v Celtic

5 September 1987 Premier League	Dundee United	0 – 0	Celtic	Dundee
15:00 GMT		Sunday Mail		Stadium: Tannadice Park Attendance: 16,403

Falkirk v Celtic

12 September 1987 Premier League	Falkirk	0 – 1	Celtic	Falkirk
15:00 GMT		Evening Times	Burns 33'	Stadium: Brockville Park Attendance: 14,319

Celtic v Aberdeen

19 September 1987 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 2	Aberdeen	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Burns 38' Stark 48'	Sunday Mail	P. Nicholas 60' J. Miller 89'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 36,957

St Mirren v Celtic

26 September 1987 Premier League	St Mirren	0 – 1	Celtic	Paisley
15:00 GMT		Evening Times	Whyte 74'	Stadium: St Mirren Park, Love Street Attendance: 18,011

Celtic v Hibernian

3 October 1987 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 1	Hibernian	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Walker 4'	Evening Times	Watson 79'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 29,802

Dundee v Celtic

7 October 1987 Premier League	Dundee	1 – 1	Celtic	Dundee
19:30 GMT	Angus 44'	Glasgow Herald	Walker 70' (pen)	Stadium: Dens Park Attendance: 13,238

Celtic v Morton

10 October 1987 Premier League	Celtic	3 – 1	Morton	Glasgow
19:30 GMT	Whyte 2' McAvennie 11' Walker 18'	Evening Times	O'Hara 40'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 20,940

Rangers v Celtic

17 October 1987 Premier League	Rangers	2 – 2	Celtic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	McCoist 65' Gough 90'	Sunday Telegraph	Walker 33' Butcher 35' (og)	Stadium: Ibrox Park Attendance: 43,486

Celtic v Dundee United

24 October 1987 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 2	Dundee United	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Shepherd 90'	Evening Times	Clark 79' Ferguson 88'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 28,982

Celtic v Falkirk

28 October 1987 Premier League	Celtic	3 – 2	Falkirk	Glasgow
19:30 GMT	Archdeacon 31' Stark 48' 80'	Glasgow Herald	Stewart 85' Manley 87'	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 11,381 Referee: P. Hanley

Aberdeen v Celtic

31 October 1987 Premier League	Aberdeen	0 – 1	Celtic	Aberdeen
15:00 GMT		Sunday Mail	McAvennie 72'	Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 20,562

Hearts v Celtic

7 November 1987 Premier League	Hearts	1 – 1	Celtic	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT	Colquhoun 40'	Sunday Post	McGhee 78'	Stadium: Tynecastle Park Attendance: 28,992 Referee: J. McCluskey

Celtic v Dundee

14 November 1987 Premier League	Celtic	5 – 0	Dundee	Glasgow
15:00 GMT	Walker 2' 5' Miller 60' McAvennie 67' 89'	Sunday Mail		Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 29,749 Referee: D. Miller

Motherwell v Celtic

17 November 1987 Premier League	Motherwell	0 – 2	Celtic	Motherwell
19:30 GMT		Glasgow Herald	Walker 33' Whyte 50'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 17,003 Referee: D. Hope

Celtic v Dunfermline Athletic

21 November 1987 Premier League	Celtic	4 – 0	Dunfermline Athletic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 26,534

Celtic v St Mirren

25 November 1987 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	St Mirren	Glasgow
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 24,718

Hibernian v Celtic

28 November 1987 Premier League	Hibernian	0 – 1	Celtic	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 23,055

Morton v Celtic

5 December 1987 Premier League	Morton	0 – 4	Celtic	Greenock
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Cappielow Park Attendance: 12,552

Celtic v Hearts

12 December 1987 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 2	Hearts	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 42,004

Celtic v Aberdeen

19 December 1987 Premier League	Celtic	0 – 0	Aberdeen	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 35,711

Falkirk v Celtic

22 December 1987 Premier League	Falkirk	0 – 2	Celtic	Falkirk
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Brockville Park Attendance: 11,144

Dundee United v Celtic

26 December 1987 Premier League	Dundee United	1 – 2	Celtic	Dundee
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Tannadice Park Attendance: 18,465

Celtic v Rangers

2 January 1988 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 0	Rangers	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 60,106

St Mirren v Celtic

9 January 1988 Premier League	St Mirren	1 – 1	Celtic	Paisley
15:00 GMT				Stadium: St Mirren Park, Love Street Attendance: 19,030

Celtic v Hibernian

16 January 1988 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 0	Hibernian	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 34,896

Celtic v Motherwell

6 February 1988 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Motherwell	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 23,035

Dundee v Celtic

13 February 1988 Premier League	Dundee	1 – 2	Celtic	Dundee
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Dens Park Attendance: 17,101

Celtic v Morton

27 February 1988 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Morton	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 21,116

Dunfermline Athletic v Celtic

2 March 1988 Premier League	Dunfermline Athletic	0 – 4	Celtic	Dunfermline
19:30 GMT				Stadium: East End Park Attendance: 17,367

Celtic v Falkirk

5 March 1988 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 0	Falkirk	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 21,711

Rangers v Celtic

20 March 1988 Premier League	Rangers	1 – 2	Celtic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 42,850

Celtic v Dundee United

26 March 1988 Premier League	Celtic	0 – 0	Dundee United	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 32,934

Aberdeen v Celtic

30 March 1988 Premier League	Aberdeen	0 – 1	Celtic	Aberdeen
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 21,688

Hibernian v Celtic

2 April 1988 Premier League	Hibernian	0 – 2	Celtic	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 19,357

Celtic v St Mirren

5 April 1988 Premier League	Celtic	2 – 0	St Mirren	Glasgow
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 41,465

Hearts v Celtic

16 April 1988 Premier League	Hearts	2 – 1	Celtic	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Tynecastle Park Attendance: 25,144

Celtic v Dundee

23 April 1988 Premier League	Celtic	3 – 0	Dundee	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 61,927

Motherwell v Celtic

30 April 1988 Premier League	Motherwell	0 – 1	Celtic	Motherwell
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 13,874

Celtic v Dunfermline Athletic

7 May 1988 Premier League	Celtic	1 – 0	Dunfermline Athletic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 38,482

Scottish Cup

Celtic v Stranraer

30 January 1988 Third round	Celtic	1 - 0	Stranraer	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 21,625

Celtic v Hibernian

21 February 1988 Fourth round	Celtic	0 - 0	Hibernian	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 30,537

Hibernian v Celtic

24 February 1988 Fourth round replay	Hibernian	0 - 1	Celtic	Edinburgh
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 24,000

Partick Thistle v Celtic

12 March 1988 Fifth round	Partick Thistle	0 - 3	Celtic	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Firhill Park Attendance: 46,348

Celtic v Hearts

9 April 1988 Semi-final	Celtic	2 - 1	Hearts	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 66,646

Celtic v Dundee United

14 May 1988 Final	Celtic	2 - 1	Dundee United	Glasgow
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 68,090

Scottish League Cup

Celtic v Forfar Athletic

19 August 1987 Second round	Celtic	3 - 1	Forfar Athletic	Glasgow
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 13,711

Dumbarton v Celtic

26 August 1987 Third round	Dumbarton	1 - 5	Celtic	Dumbarton
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Boghead Park Attendance: 9,429

Aberdeen v Celtic

1 September 1987 Quarter Finals	Aberdeen	1 - 0	Celtic	Aberdeen
19:30 GMT				Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 21,539

UEFA Cup

Celtic

Borussia Dortmund

15 September 1987 1st round 1st leg	Celtic	2 - 1	Borussia Dortmund	Glasgow
20:00 GMT				Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 41,400

Borussia Dortmund

Celtic

30 September 1987 1st round 2nd leg	Borussia Dortmund	2 - 0 (3 – 2 agg.)	Celtic	Dortmund
20:00 GMT				Stadium: Westfalenstadion Attendance: 54,000

Glasgow Cup

Queen's Park v Celtic

3 November 1987 Glasgow Cup Semi-final	Queen's Park	0 - 2	Celtic	Glasgow
19:30 GMT		Glasgow Herald	Burns 65' Archdeacon 80' (pen)	Stadium: Hampden Park Referee: G. Evans

Squad statistics

^[7]^[8]

Pos.	Name	League		Scottish Cup		League Cup		UEFA Cup		Other		Total
Pos.	Name	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Pat Bonner	32	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	39	0
GK	Allen McKnight	12	0	1	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	17	0
DF	Roy Aitken	43	1	6	0	3	0	2	0	0	0	54	1
DF	Lex Baillie	14	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	0
DF	Stuart Balmer	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
DF	Mick McCarthy	23	0	3	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	28	0
DF	Paul McGugan	2	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
DF	Chris Morris	44	3	6	0	3	0	2	0	0	0	55	3
DF	Anton Rogan	31	1	4	0	3	0	2	0	1	0	41	1
DF	Derek Whyte	41	3	5	0	2	0	2	1	1	0	51	4
MF	Tommy Burns	25	2	5	1	3	1	2	0	1	1	36	5
MF	Peter Grant	37	2	3	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	44	2
MF	Paul McStay	44	5	6	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	54	5
MF	Steven Murray	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
MF	Tony Shepherd	4	1	0	0	1	0	1	0	1	0	7	1
MF	Billy Stark	37	8	5	2	3	3	2	0	0	0	47	13
MF	Owen Archdeacon	9	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	1	11	2
FW	Frank McAvennie	32	15	6	3	0	0	0	0	1	0	39	18
FW	Dugald McCarrison	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
FW	Mark McGhee	21	6	4	1	3	1	1	0	1	0	30	8
FW	Dougie McGuire	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
FW	Joe Miller	26	3	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	32	3
FW	Andy Walker	42	26	4	2	3	3	2	1	0	0	51	32

Transfers

Transfers In

Dates	Player	From	Fee
May 1987	Mick McCarthy	Manchester City	£500,000
July 1987	Billy Stark	Aberdeen	£75,000
July 1987	Chris Morris	Sheffield Wednesday	£125,000
1 July 1987	Andy Walker	Motherwell	£350,000^[9]
September 1987	Steven Murray	Nottingham Forest	£50,000^[10]
September 1987	Charlie Christie	Inverness Thistle	£20,000
October 1987	Frank McAvennie	West Ham United	£750,000
November 1987	Joe Miller	Aberdeen	£650,000

Total spend: £2.575 million

Transfers Out

Dates	Player	To	Fee
12 May 1987	Danny McGrain	Hamilton Accies	Free^[11]
June 1987	Murdo MacLeod	Borussia Dortmund	£250,000^[12]
June 1987	Peter Latchford	Clyde	Free
1 July 1987	Mo Johnston	FC Nantes	£330,000 (set by tribunal)^[9]
July 1987	Alan McInally	Aston Villa	£250,000^[12]
1 July 1987	Brian McClair	Manchester United^[9]	£850,000 (set by tribunal)^[13]
1 July 1987	Davie Provan	Retired^[9]	n/a
October 1987	Mark Smith	Dunfermline Athletic	£50,000
October 1987	Paul McGugan	Barnsley	£55,000

Total received: £1.785 million

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Average Home League Game Attendances". FitbaStats. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
^ ^a ^b ^c Beattie, Douglas (2009). Happy Birthday Dear Celtic. Vision Sports Publishing. ISBN 978-1-9095-3445-2.
^ Wilson, Brian (1988). Celtic - A Century with Honour. Willow Books. p. 186. ISBN 0-00-218230-0.
^ Wilson, Brian (1988). Celtic - A Century with Honour. Willow Books. p. 187. ISBN 0-00-218230-0.
^ Reynolds, Jim (11 April 1988). "A heart stopping finish leaves Celtic one step closer to double glory". The Glasgow Herald. p. 12. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
^ Wilson, Brian (1988). Celtic - A Century with Honour. Willow Books. p. 189. ISBN 0-00-218230-0.
^ "Results for Season 1987/1988 in All Competitions". FitbaStats. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
^ "Queen's go down fighting". The Glasgow Herald. 4 November 1987. p. 31. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Paul, Ian (2 July 1987). "Mixed feelings as Walker joins up and McClair signs off". The Glasgow Herald. p. 16. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
^ Paul, Ian (15 September 1987). "Celtic's European Target". The Glasgow Herald. p. 32. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
^ Reynolds, Jim (13 May 1987). "Celtic free disappointed McGrain". The Glasgow Herald. p. 28. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
^ ^a ^b Hay, Davie; Gordon, Alex (October 2009). "16 - A Fateful Day in May". The Quiet Assassin: The Davie Hay Story. Black & White Publishing. ISBN 9781845028695. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
^ Reynolds, Jim (31 July 1987). "McClair price is right for United at £850,000". The Glasgow Herald. p. 31. Retrieved 12 January 2015.

v t e Celtic F.C. seasons
1888–89 1889–90
1890–91 1891–92 1892–93 1893–94 1894–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–1900
1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10
1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20
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1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50
1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60
1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70
1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80
1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90
1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000
2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10
2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20
2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
List of unbeaten football club seasons

v t e 1987–88 in Scottish football
« 1986–87 1988–89 »
Domestic leagues	Football League Premier Division First Division Second Division Highland League
Domestic cups	Scottish Cup Final League Cup Final Junior Cup Tennent's Sixes
European competitions	European Cup European Cup Winners' Cup UEFA Cup
Related to national team	Results Euro 1988 qualifying (Group 7) Rous Cup
Club seasons
Premier Division	Aberdeen Celtic Dundee Dundee United Dunfermline Athletic Falkirk Heart of Midlothian Hibernian Morton Motherwell Rangers St. Mirren
First Division	Airdrieonians Clyde Clydebank Dumbarton East Fife Forfar Athletic Hamilton Academical Kilmarnock Meadowbank Thistle Partick Thistle Queen of the South Raith Rovers
Second Division	Albion Rovers Alloa Athletic Arbroath Ayr United Brechin City Berwick Rangers Cowdenbeath East Stirlingshire Montrose Queen's Park St. Johnstone Stenhousemuir Stirling Albion Stranraer