Glasgow | Celtic close gap on Hearts
Hibernian 1 - 2 Celtic
Interim Celtic manager Martin O'Neill maintained his flawless domestic run.
Two goals in the space of 33 first-half seconds sank Hibernian and moved the champions to within two points of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts, with a game in hand.
The Northern Irishman confirmed before kick-off that he expects to remain in charge for Wednesday’s meeting with Dundee while the final details of Wilfried Nancy’s arrival are completed.
O’Neill, now 73, collected a sixth win from seven matches during his temporary spell, with Daizen Maeda and Arne Engels delivering the decisive first-half blows.
Closer analysis of what happened
Hibs had begun brightly and passed up two good openings, with Martin Boyle and Jamie McGrath both off target. Their wastefulness proved costly. A defensive lapse gifted Celtic the breakthrough when goalkeeper Raphael Sallinger played a loose pass straight to Reo Hatate, who fed Maeda to roll the ball into an empty net.
Celtic struck again moments later as Engels guided in Hyun Jun Yang’s cross, taking a boot to the face as he stooped to head home.
The contest might have been over before half-time when Maeda deftly back-heeled the ball into the path of Marcelo Saracchi, whose low strike clipped the post.
46' - Back underway with one sub!
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Hibs, to their credit, responded with purpose after the interval and forced Celtic into a far more open second half. Boyle’s calmly taken penalty, awarded after a VAR check for a Liam Scales handball, injected renewed belief into the visitors but an equaliser eluded them.
Chris Cadden went closest late on, only to be denied by Kasper Schmeichel’s outstretched leg with the Celtic defence beaten.
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