CELTIC 5
INVERNESS CT 0 INVERNESS boss Craig Brewster didn't think the scoreline was a fair reflection of play and he was absolutely right. As has been the story of the season so far Celtic looked brilliant going forward but dodgy in defence, particularly in the wide areas. Put it another way, if Artur Boruc and Stephen McManus are not on top form on Tuesday night against Shakhtar Donetsk then major problems will happen during that 90 minutes. Inverness created several chances and exposed Celtic time and time again. ut the major plus point for Gordon Strachan is his side are scoring goals from every area of the field. Few teams will be able to cope with them if Shunsuke Nakamura, Scott Brown and Aiden McGeady are in full flow. They are a joy to watch.
A double from Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, strikes from Massimo Donati and Nakamura along with a Phil McGuire own goal sent Celtic racing clear at the top of the table.
Yet for all the defeat was a heavy one, Inverness started well and Dennis Wyness fired high over the bar from close range.
But Celtic managed to open the scoring without reaching top gear.
Scott McDonald got to the dead-ball line, cut the ball back for Nakamura and he rolled it to the edge of the box for Brown.
His shot didn't have much power and was going wide but Vennegoor of Hesselink was in the centre of the six yard box and managed to deflect it with his thigh past Michael Fraser.
That settled the nerves for the champions but they had to thank Boruc for keeping them ahead when he pulled off a stunning one-handed save in the 34th minute.
Midfielder Don Cowie let fly from 25 yards and Celtic's Polish keeper had to be at his best to get down low to his right and stop the powerful drive.
The Highlanders didn't carry much luck and they were up against it four minutes from the break when Donati scored with the aid of a slight deflection off McGuire.
The Italian made his way towards goal and cut inside from the left to get the ball on to his right foot. The midfielder then bent it past Fraser although there was a nick off McGuire.
Terrific wide play from McGeady in the 52nd minute led to a perfect delivery to the back post for McDonald. The former Motherwell striker chose to try to beat Fraser with a header from an acute angle instead of squaring it across the six yard box for Vennegoor of Hesselink.
Still, the Aussie striker later made amends for his error of judgment at the fourth goal. Inverness were still gamely trying to get the goal that would put them back in contention and they came close when Marius Niculae's shot shaved Boruc's left hand post.
But the game was over as a contest in the 56th minute when the home side scored again.
Almost 30 yards out, Nakamura let rip with his left foot and the ball flew into the top right-hand corner of Fraser's net. It was a strike of perfection. Unstoppable.
Knowing they were heading to the top of the table, Strachan's side moved up a gear against an Inverness defence that didn't appear to have too much fight left.
In the 59th minute McGeady passed to Donati and his touch took it to McDonald. He looked up, spotted his strike partner lurking at the back post and found him with a lovely little chip.
Vennegoor of Hesselink made no mistake from five yards out as his downward header flew past Fraser.
McDonald had a fine game but he could make an even greater contribution if he chose to play in his team-mates more often.
With the midweek visit to Ukraine in mind Evander Sno came on just after the hour mark for Brown.
Chris Killen quickly followed when he came off the bench to replace Vennegoor of Hesselink.
However with plenty energy left to get at Celtic, Romanian hitman Niculae struck a post for Inverness with a low shot.
The rebound fell to Cowie 12 yards out but his shot was cleared off the line by the solid and dependable McManus.
In the 70th minute Celtic made it five. Nakamura moved forward at pace and slipped the ball wide to McDonald on the right.
The striker dribbled past Grant Munro and his low cross was meant for Killen. However, McGuire got there first to deflect it past Fraser from two yards out.
Caley Thistle remain rooted at the bottom.No points from six games makes frightening reading. Yet they cut Celtic open in wide areas with ease and it's hard to believe they didn't score.
MATCH STATS
CELTIC v INVERNESS CT
8 SHOTS ON 6
9 SHOTS OFF 8
6 OFFSIDE 3
10 FOULS 9
3 CORNERS 4
0 BOOKINGS 1
REF WATCH
CRAIG THOMSON had a comfortable afternoon in a fixture that rarely throws up any great controversy. Had no tough calls to make and simply allowed the game to flow. Rating: 6/10.
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