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Who are Lincoln Red Imps? Profile of Gibraltar side that stunned Celtic

Lincoln's Lee Casciaro (second from right) celebrates as he opens the scoring

What do you get if you cross two police officers, a labourer, a shipping agent, a customs officer and a civil servant?

The backbone of the team that beat Celtic in the Champions League!

Gibraltar's Lincoln Red Imps caused a huge shock in Brendan Rodgers' first competitive game in charge as they won 1-0 in Tuesday's second qualifying round first leg.

The starting XI for the game featured just five professional footballers with the winning goal coming in the 48th minute from military policeman Lee Casciaro.

Lincoln Red Imps started six part-time players against Celtic
Image: Lincoln Red Imps started six part-time players against Celtic

Lee, who scored Gibraltar's first competitive goal against Scotland at Hampden Park in March 2015, was joined in the starting XI by younger brothers and fellow Gibraltar internationals Kyle and Ryan.

Another pair of brothers were also involved as Joseph Chipolina's brother Kenneth came on as a 90th-minute substitute.

Lincoln Red Imps' Lee Casciaro (right) scored the winner in a 1-0 victory over Celtic
Image: Lee Casciaro has also scored an international goal against Scotland

All of the Gibraltarian players in the starting XI played for Gibraltar in the qualifying campaign for Euro 2016 - although it was not exactly a successful one as they lost 10 games out of 10, scoring only twice and conceding 56 goals.

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There were three Spaniards in the team - goalkeeper Raul Navas and midfielders Yeray and Antonio Calderon Vallejo - plus Portuguese defender Bernardo Lopes.

Lincoln's Lee Casciaro (second from right) celebrates as he opens the scoring
Image: Lee Casciaro celebrates as he opens the scoring against Celtic

The manager, Julio Ribas, is from Uruguay and used to manage current Uruguayan champions Club Atlético Peñarol and the Oman national team.

He also played for and managed Liverpool - the Uruguayan team with the same name as the famous Premier League side - and also spent time at Nacional and River Plate during his playing days.

He took over the Red Imps in April this year and found himself in charge of a team that has won the Gibraltar Football League 22 times and the Rock Cup (their version of the FA Cup) on 17 occasions since forming in 1976.

Lincoln's Lee Casciaro (second from right) celebrates as he opens the scoring
Image: Lee Casciaro's two brothers were also in the starting XI

The last time they failed to win the league was 2002 when Gibraltar United beat them to the crown and disgraced former UEFA President Michel Platini presented them with the trophy when they won the Rock Cup in 2014.

This is their third season in the Champions League qualifying rounds after Gibraltar became a member of UEFA in 2014. In their first season they were knocked out 6-3 on aggregate by Hanvar Boltfelag of the Faroe Islands.

Celtic leave the field of play having lost 1-0
Image: Celtic remain favourites to progress

Last season they beat FC Santa Coloma of Andorra in the first qualifying round before going out 3-0 on aggregate to Midtjylland - the Danish side that beat Manchester United at home in the Europa League in February.

Celtic will remain favourites to progress the next round in Wednesday's return leg at Celtic Park - a stadium which is a far cry from the Red Imps' 5,000-seater Victoria Stadium - which they share with every other team in Gibraltar.

Lincoln Red Imps FC
Image: Lincoln Red Imps share the Victoria Stadium with every other club in Gibraltar

But don't expect to read anything about that match on the club's official website. It hasn't been updated since last April and the news page carries results from September 2014.

Surely somebody will log on to add the most famous result in their history?

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