Erik ten Hag highlighted Alejandro Garnacho’s bravery, maturity and confidence after the Manchester United teenager made a goalscoring return after a two-month injury lay-off.

The nascent 18-year-old talent, who recently signed a new deal until 2028, received an excellent reception on his first appearance since sustaining an ankle injury against Southampton on March 12.

Garnacho was brought on in the 82nd minute and scored with a stoppage-time strike off the post in front of the Stretford End to wrap up a 2-0 victory against Wolves.

Ten Hag was happy with all his introductions after a few weeks when he said the “subs were bad”, but the Argentinian took the headlines after United got their top-four tilt back on track.

“Garna, of course, scored a great goal,” the United boss said. “He came in, he did I think almost everything good and then he scored a goal.

“That will give him belief and that is good for us for the rest of the season that he is back. It’ll give him confidence and he can have an impact.

“He is showing when you score some winners, like Fulham, assist against City, for instance. Now the second goal, he is showing some things.

“Also sometimes he lacks defensive transition, in pressing, he has to step up in such things. Also, when you are going into an action or keep the ball, so decisions.

“But I think when you see it all over, yeah, he is a huge talent and he’s brave.”

Garnacho arrived from Atletico Madrid in 2020 and was last season’s Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year having played a key role in United’s FA Youth Cup triumph.

The Argentina youth international frustrated Ten Hag during pre-season but has since won the Dutchman over, making 30 first-team appearances so far this campaign.

“One of the aspects from the biggest talent is that they are mature,” the United boss said. “First, they take responsibility and, second, they are mature.

“To bring in their skills, they have belief that they can dominate opponents and I think once again he did it.

“He has a big impact in many games either when starting or coming on, he’s ready, straight into the game and that is so important for the squad you can bring such players.

“I am happy that you can bring young players and hopefully he will progress so quickly that he can compete for a starting XI position because that is his next challenge.”

Garnacho’s strike was United’s 100th goal of the season in all competitions and complemented Anthony Martial’s opener in a 25th Old Trafford victory of the campaign.

The win was an important response to defeats at Brighton and West Ham, which had allowed Liverpool to close the gap in the race for Champions League qualification.

“You have to deal (with setbacks),” Ten Hag said, “Everyone told me in United it is never going in the easy way, we go the difficult way.

“I think the team was ready for this battle, for this fight.

“Once again, we make the goalie of the opponent the man of the match, so we could have made life easier if we score the second goal early on.

“But we have the points, we are happy with that and we move on.”

Wolves failed to muster a shot on target as their poor away form continued, leaving boss Julen Lopetegui frustrated.

“Obviously, the result was not good for us, but we tried to compete with them,” said the Spaniard, who praised goalkeeper Dan Bentley after making an impressive Premier League debut.

“In the context of the match, the first half, we suffered one goal in one mistake that we had and they didn’t have any more chances.

“In the second half, we take a risk, we dominate the game and had situations when we could have done better.

“In the end, it was a pity, we tried, but, in the end, they deserved to win.”

Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes praised his players for displaying both ‘fire and ice’ in a vital 2-0 victory over Livingston which lifted them out of the cinch Premiership relegation zone.

After a tense and goalless first half at Rugby Park, the home side secured all three points thanks to Kyle Vassell’s opener and a Danny Armstrong penalty awarded after a VAR check on handball against Livingston midfielder Jason Holt.

Kilmarnock are now in 10th place in the table, three points above bottom club Dundee United and just two points behind ninth-placed St Johnstone who they host next Saturday.

“We spoke at half-time about the need for calm,” said McInnes. “It’s that thing about fire and ice – you want to be passionate and show you’re motivated, whilst also being calm.

“We were too nervy and too agitated in the first half. It was frantic and we didn’t have enough composure in the game.

“Our passes forward needed to be more measured into our strikers. Getting the goal at the start of the second half really settled everyone down. You could feel it in the whole stadium.

“Livingston are a tough team to play against when you know you need a result. They are really compact and pick up a lot of scraps and second balls.

“They can make you nervous with how hard they work – but I wanted my players to outwork Livingston. If we could do that, we knew it’d give us a chance.

“We got the break from VAR with the penalty. That’s probably one of the first breaks we’ve had from VAR.

“I wasn’t actually sure if it was a penalty. I thought it hit the boy’s shoulder. But the fourth official said to me it was a penalty. At 2-0, you then started to see the confidence coming back.”

Livingston manager David Martindale was unhappy with his players as they slumped to a seventh consecutive away defeat without scoring a goal.

“Our away form since the turn of the year has been nothing short of horrific,” said Martindale.

“I have changed the shape and the personnel but we are not getting the winning formula. I would have happily walked away from here at half-time with a 0-0.

“We then lose a stupid goal and a penalty which is a penalty all day long. We speak about it all the time but players still throw their hands in the air.

“We only have ourselves to blame as we are not doing the basics at both ends of the park. It is definitely a confidence issue but we need to dig deep and get it back.”

Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell hailed Kevin van Veen’s commitment after the striker played through injury to net in his eighth consecutive game.

The Dutchman overcame a foot knock which he had suffered last weekend to score a re-taken penalty in confident style as Well beat St Johnstone 2-0 to confirm their cinch Premiership status for another year.

Van Veen saw his initial effort saved but Remi Matthews was penalised for coming off his line too early and the in-form striker then chipped his second penalty over the diving goalkeeper to give the visitors a 52nd-minute lead.

It was his 26th goal of the season, his 11th in eight games and a 22nd in the league, which leaves him two behind Premiership top goalscorer Kyogo Furuhashi, one of three Celtic players the Motherwell man goes up against in Sunday’s PFA Scotland player of the year awards.

Van Veen is the first Motherwell player to score in eight consecutive top-flight games since the Second World War and the first in Scotland since Craig Dargo for Inverness in 2005-06.

Kettlewell said: “Undoubtedly he catches the headlines, we understand why, eight games in a row he has now scored, but he is very much committed to the cause, which everybody can see.

“He played through an injury and if you’re not committed to the cause then he’s chapping my door telling me he wants to sit at the side.

“It’s just a knock on his foot, it’s not a great issue, but he hasn’t trained an awful lot this week.

“I think everybody could see that wasn’t his best day but he still comes up with another goal.

“He gets the second bite at the penalty, shows unbelievable composure to do what he did with the second effort. That was tremendous.”

Kettlewell, whose side killed off the game in stoppage time, added: “I’m delighted for Mikael Mandron to get his first league goal for us and I thought his efforts deserved it as well.”

The result leaves St Johnstone just three points ahead of the danger zone and manager Steven MacLean bemoaned a lack of quality in the final third after his side failed to test Liam Kelly.

“I thought we just lacked that little bit of quality,” he said. “I thought first half we were the better side and got into good areas and (lacked the) final ball, that wee bit of killer instinct.

“Second half I don’t think we started well enough but they only looked dangerous in transitions and then we concede the penalty.

“Remi saves it and it gets called back by VAR. It is what it is. I think Remi was off his line, the fourth official said that.

“The second goal, we are having a go and trying to get back in the game, I will take that one. But there was nothing in the game – they get the penalty and that changes the game.”

Jim Goodwin lamented a dismal defensive display as his Dundee United side slipped back to the foot of the cinch Premiership with a 3-1 home defeat at the hands of relegation rivals Ross County.

The Tayside outfit started the afternoon in 10th place and ended it two points adrift at the foot of the table with three games to play after being leapfrogged by both the Staggies and Kilmarnock.

A hat-trick of close-range finishes from Jordan White did the damage, and United manager Goodwin was furious with the way the County striker was allowed so much space.

“It was poor defensively, far too easy at times,” he said. “It was the basics, dropping players and not marking on the right side, something we have been good at for weeks.

“It’s really difficult to take because I felt we were making progress, so to defend like that and go back to losing goals like those, it is really disappointing.

“I thought we’d eradicated it but it has raised its ugly head again.

“We have been given credit for the fight, aggression and determination we have showed lately, but I felt the difference between the two teams was in the boxes.

“County man-handled (United striker) Steven Fletcher and were aggressive with him, but in our box Jordan White got too much joy. He dictated to our defenders today and that disappoints me.

“The players have been told it wasn’t acceptable. It’s probably best if I don’t say what was said.

“You can hold your hands up if a team carves you open but those three goals were so avoidable.

“We have put ourselves in a difficult position now with results elsewhere and we’re bottom of the table again.”

County boss Malky Mackay was delighted with the way his side handled the occasion as they set about silencing a bumper crowd of more than 10,000 United fans before climbing off the bottom of the table.

“We knew we had to start fast, knowing there was going to be 10,000 fans and the intensity that could bring for Dundee United,” said Mackay, whose side took the lead after just 38 seconds and then scored two more in the second half after Jamie McGrath’s first-half penalty had levelled things up.

“Coming out it was like the old days at Tannadice, all that tangerine, so it was terrific to see. I told them we have to start well and get the first goal, so we were delighted we did.

“At half-time I asked them to raise the energy levels and give what they gave against Livingston. We got our goals and could have scored another couple.”

Eberechi Eze’s brace spoiled Bournemouth’s ambitions of securing Premier League safety after the Cherries’ afternoon ended in a 2-0 loss to Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

Gary O’Neil’s men needed just one point to make certain of another season in the top flight and looked bright to start with, but fell behind when Eze fired his side ahead late in the first half.

It was not all good news for Roy Hodgson’s hosts, who saw Wilfried Zaha forced off after the break.

However, Eze added a second for the Eagles, who had already secured mathematical safety, while the visiting Cherries still need one more point to mathematically avoid the drop.

Neither side was able to create any clear-cut chances inside the first 10 minutes though Bournemouth frequently tested the fortitude of centre-back pairing Marc Guehi and Joachim Andersen.

Michael Olise curled an effort wide of the far post from the edge of the area before his side were able to stave off a sustained wave of pressure from the opposition as the period ticked past the halfway point.

Joel Ward evaded two black shirts in the corner to set up Olise for a second attempt, coming closer with a cross to force Neto into a leaping grab.

Olise entered the afternoon with nine assists and nearly added another when he sent a cross to Wilfried Zaha at the far post, who misdirected his effort from three yards out.

VAR was called in for the first time following an altercation between Andersen and Jefferson Lerma inside the Cherries’ area for a potential red card on the Palace defender, but the hosts remained at full strength after the review.

Palace had failed to make anything of six corners to Bournemouth’s two, but the statistics were otherwise closely split as the contest approached the 40-minute mark as both sides searched for a breakthrough.

It was the hosts who finally achieved it, sparked by Zaha, who battled his way around his marker at the edge of the area before cutting back to Jordan Ayew.

He took a quick backwards touch to direct the ball to Eze, who gave Neto no chance as he fired home from centre after 39 minutes.

Will Hughes quickly tested Neto to start the second half but the Selhurst faithful soon witnessed a worrying scene when Zaha, only recently recovered from a hamstring injury, pulled up and was replaced by Odsonne Edouard.

The Eagles talisman, out of contract at the end of this campaign, was treated to a rousing chant by the home support, possibly wondering if this would be the last time they would watch him walk off the pitch in a Palace shirt.

Eze bagged his second in the 58th minute, a solo effort that saw him collect the ball from Olise on the left before a mazy run through centre put him in position to fire his 10th of the season into the top right.

Palace’s corner tally ticked over into double-digits but the scoreline stood as the hosts survived a late free-kick from a dangerous position.

Palace survived before substitute Jairo Riedewald tried to make up for his involvement in the set-piece by attempting to tee up Edouard for a late third – but two was ultimately all it took.

Former England goalkeeper Carly Telford believes the injuries that have struck the Lionesses can inspire Sarina Wiegman’s side at this summer’s Women’s World Cup.

England will head to Australia and New Zealand as one of the favourites, but their hopes have been hit by serious injuries that have ruled out captain Leah Williamson and Fran Kirby, while Beth Mead, Lucy Bronze, and Millie Bright also face a race against a time to be fit in time.

The loss of key players could derail many of Wiegman’s plans for the tournament but Telford believes it will bring together those who do make the trip.

“As much as they might be team-mates or enemies in the Super League, a lot of them are friends, and watching your friends get hurt, you know how short a football career is and how few tournaments you might get to go to,” Telford told the PA news agency.

“It is hurtful when you see team-mates go down but it can inspire them as they will want to play for the girls who are missing it, and they will use it as motivation.”

Telford believes the European champions, whose best World Cup finish was the third place achieved in 2015, will have a target on their back this summer after the successes enjoyed in the last few years.

“I think we will see an ultra-competitive side,” she said. “We’ve had a couple of knock backs with injuries but they’ve had that taste of winning now and once you’ve had that it’s very hard to lose sight of what you want to do which is to win a trophy on a global stage.

“The World Cup is a different animal, you’re playing against different nations, sides from South America and Africa you don’t often come up against, and you’re travelling to the other side of the world. It will be a difficult challenge but one Sarina will prepare them for…

“When is there not pressure on England to do well and win a tournament? Even when we haven’t been one of the top sides. But of course once we’ve won something the girls have a target on their heads.

“It’s been the Americans for a long time but England have some brilliant players and arguably the best manager in the world. It’s a huge opportunity to put England on the map again.”

The last World Cup ended in disappointment as England were beaten in the semi-finals by the United States, a match in which Telford played.

“Hurt,” she said when asked her memories of the tournament. “We got so far and fell at the final hurdle, but on reflection it was huge. We got so much support, we had a good tournament and took it as far as we could. We made strides on the pitch and I like to think it led to what came after.”

The World Cup trophy was on hand as Telford spoke at a grassroots football session staged by Bloomsbury Football and the Football Association on Saturday morning at the Ark Elvin Academy within sight of Wembley Stadium.

The session was part of a project led by Bloomsbury to offer more opportunities to play for children from underprivileged kids from across London.

“Having the World Cup trophy here means we’re about to get kids excited about something they can dream about, but also just have some fun,” Telford said.

“There needs to be so many more opportunities and pitches like this where kids can come all year round. There’s been funding from England, the FA and FIFA to make sure every kids has the opportunity to dream big because that’s what you want to do as a kid.”

Kelle Roos was Aberdeen’s hero as his second-half penalty save earned his side a point from a goalless draw against Hibernian to move a step closer to securing third place in the cinch Premiership.

Hibs had been the better side throughout, but a goal never looked like coming until a penalty call from VAR referee Andrew Dallas saw Roos save Kevin Nisbet’s resultant spot-kick.

The Dons had prepared a number of festivities to honour their European double-winning team of 1983 and a sell-out crowd packed Pittodrie in response.

However, Hibs silenced the bumper home support, as the visitors provided the better of the play, albeit with no reward.

The pattern was set as early as the first minute when Aberdeen’s Liam Scales was booked for a foul on Joe Newell as the Hibs man threatened to create an early chance.

Elie Youan would be a constant threat on the Hibernian left and he had the first real chance, forcing Roos into a low save after Nisbet’s through-ball.

Youan would turn provider for Josh Campbell after 25 minutes, but the midfielder – who scored a hat-trick in the reverse tie between the teams – saw his effort strike the base of the post and go behind.

Roos seemed to be beaten all-ends up when a quick throw saw Nisbet race clear of a sluggish home defence, but his effort with the outside of his right foot drifted the ball wide of the post.

Aberdeen had been almost non-existent as a threat, Leighton Clarkson’s blocked effort the only chance they had through the first half, but a clever training-ground corner routine saw Hayden Coulson flash an effort narrowly over the crossbar on the stroke of half-time.

The home side came close with another effort immediately after the break as Bojan Miovski set Ryan Duncan away, but the Dons youth graduate saw his shot blocked.

But Hibs were back in the supremacy before long, and Youan saw an effort come off the post after lax defending from Coulson.

There was a VAR check a minute later following a nasty clash between Josh Campbell and Scales, but a yellow was deemed enough punishment for the Hibs’ man’s high foot.

The sides traded blows until the 75th minute when a Hibs corner saw Youan head off the crossbar and substitute Harry McKirdy’s strike seemingly come off the post.

However, VAR subsequently showed a Coulson handball and a spot-kick was awarded.

Nisbet stepped up confidently but his drive straight down the middle was saved by the legs of Roos, who survived a subsequent VAR check as to whether he had come off his line and the Dons support were suddenly alive again.

However, Aberdeen, who saw Duk forced off with a hamstring injury, had several others play on through injury in an attritional performance which could prove costly further down the line.

Saracens surged into the Gallagher Premiership final but their 38-15 victory over Northampton was tinged with controversy after Sean Maitland plundered two tries having escaped an early card.

Last season’s runners-up were irresistible for long spells of a one-sided play-off at StoneX Stadium as they set up a Twickenham showdown with either champions Leicester or Sale, who meet on Sunday.

But Northampton will feel aggrieved that Maitland was not at least sin-binned for clattering into George Furbank with his elbows during an aerial collision that left the England back needing lengthy treatment.

Referee Karl Dickson issued only a penalty and in making a quick decision declined to consult the TMO with the game just 25 seconds old.

To rub salt into the wound, Maitland scored Saracens’ opening two tries as part of an unstoppable first half that produced a 21-3 lead which was only briefly threatened when Northampton fought back in the third quarter.

A penalty try and Max Malins’ touchdown shut the door on the possibility of an upset and Saints, who barely fired a shot before the break, were well beaten by opponents seeking a sixth Premiership title.

Scrum-half Ivan van Zyl was named man of the match but Alex Goode could easily have been chosen given his influence in the opening stages.

When Northampton attacked and were turned over, Goode launched a stunning counter-attack given pace by Maitland but Alex Lozowski lacked the speed to finish the move.

Goode’s vision was on display again in the seventh minute when he chipped through for Maitland to score, but it was a good afternoon to be pulling the strings with Saracens dominating the gainline.

Maitland was over again in the 23rd minute after sustained pressure ended with Farrell producing a precision grubber for the Scotland wing to touch down.

Any time Northampton got the ball they were hammered backwards in the tackle but they could only blame themselves for the next try as having conceded a penalty, they switched off to allow the quick-thinking Van Zyl to tap and go for an easy run-in.

Saracens led 21-3 on the half-hour mark and when faced with a rare assault on their line they rolled up their sleeves and sent Saints packing.

Nick Tompkins’ turnover shortly after the interval typified their resolve in defence and the third quarter was harder work, with Northampton showing the fire that had been missing in the first half.

Alex Mitchell skipped over in the 56th minute and Saints engineered a superb try soon after when stylish play ended with Courtney Lawes sending James Ramm over.

But the comeback was over when Saracens’ maul forced a penalty try that also saw Tom James sent to the sin-bin, before Malins completed the rout. Sarries’ Maro Itoje was yellow-carded late on.

Kilmarnock boosted their cinch Premiership survival hopes as they climbed out of the bottom two with a 2-0 victory over Livingston.

Kyle Vassell’s first league goal for the club and a Danny Armstrong penalty saw the Rugby Park side maintain their impressive home form as they bid to avoid the drop.

Livingston, who had won all three previous meetings between the sides this season, slip to eighth place after a fifth defeat in their last six games.

The visitors were the first to threaten when Stephen Kelly pounced on a defensive mix-up involving Lewis Mayo and Joe Wright but pulled his shot narrowly wide of Sam Walker’s right-hand post in the sixth minute.

Kilmarnock responded and should have opened the scoring 10 minutes later.

Vassell latched onto a flick-on from strike partner Christian Doidge to find himself with only Shamal George to beat but his shot was too close to the Livingston keeper who saved well.

The much-travelled former Blackpool, Peterborough and Rotherham striker tested George again with a curling shot which was comfortably held, then at the other end Joel Nouble sent an effort just off target.

Kilmarnock were finding clear-cut opportunities difficult to come by but young midfielder David Watson, who signed a new contract last week, called George into action once more when his close-range header was saved.

Livingston claimed their opponents should have been reduced to 10 men before the break.

Wright, already booked for a foul on Nouble, pulled down the striker again as he tried to burst clear but referee David Munro ignored the angry protests of the visiting players as he decided a free-kick was sufficient punishment.

Kilmarnock made a vibrant start to the second half and were rewarded with the breakthrough in the 48th minute.

The combination of Doidge and Vassell caused problems for the Livingston defence once more as the latter raced onto the former’s clever flick and drove home a low shot which George got a hand to but could not keep out.

Nouble came close to an equaliser in the 58th minute when he outmuscled Wright inside the box and saw his shot from a tight angle superbly saved by Sam Walker.

However, Kilmarnock took control of the contest when they doubled their lead from the spot six minutes later.

After a VAR check, Jason Holt was penalised for blocking a Doidge shot with an outstretched arm and Armstrong stepped up to send George the wrong way with a coolly converted penalty.

Serge Gnarby bagged a double as Bayern Munich kept their grasp on the Bundesliga title race with a 6-0 rout against relegation-threatened Schalke at Allianz Arena.

Thomas Tuchel's side claimed a comfortable win to go four points clear at the top on Saturday, although Borussia Dortmund could slice that gap when they host Borussia Monchengladbach later on.

Thomas Reis' visitors offered little as Thomas Muller's pinpoint finish and a Joshua Kimmich penalty placed Bayern in full control before the half-time whistle in Bavaria.

Gnabry's brace after the break prefaced late strikes for Mathys Tel and Noussair Mazraoui, further compounding Schalke's misery, as the hosts continued their charge towards an 11th straight title.

Having handed Schalke an 8-0 thrashing on their last visit to Munich in 2020, Bayern looked like they might repeat that feat after Muller, Gnabry and Kingsley Coman all missed early chances.

The visitors saw their resistance broken 21 minutes in however when the former curled Leroy Sane's deft ball into the bottom-left corner, before matters worsened.

A VAR check awarded Bayern a penalty eight minutes later for a stray Cedric Brunner elbow on Jamal Musiala, with Kimmich sending Alexander Schwolow the wrong way from the spot.

Gnabry inflicted further damage after the interval, seizing Joao Cancelo's cut-back pass to drill past the goalkeeper, a quarter-hour before he rounded him for a second.

Tel added a late fifth from Musiala's pass to further pad the scoreline, before Mazraoui capitalised on torrid defending for a final strike in injury-time.

Ange Postecoglou admits Celtic accepting their fate was the biggest disappointment in their 3-0 defeat by Rangers at Ibrox in the final Old Firm game of the season.

The Hoops went into the game as cinch Premiership champions following their 2-0 win at Hearts last week and had been unbeaten in five Glasgow derbies this season.

However, goals from Todd Cantwell, John Souttar and Fashion Sakala gave the Light Blues their first win in seven meetings between the Glasgow giants.

Celtic remain on course for a domestic treble, with the Scottish Cup final against Championship side Inverness at Hampden Park to come on June 3, but Postecoglou spoke about the back-to-back away fixtures post-split in the league as he analysed only their the second league defeat of the season.

He said: “In the second half I felt we almost accepted our fate – you can lose a game of football, that will happen – rather than us going out there and trying to change the course of the game.

“Yeah (it was the biggest disappointment).

“They are human beings and they have had an outstanding season and the euphoria of last week and winning (the league), it is kind of weird winning it and with the fixtures, you have to play away again.

“You don’t really get a chance to appreciate the moment but welcome to Celtic. That’s the expectation, that is not going to change.

“It wasn’t a great performance, disappointing performance, disappointing outcome.

“There was a couple of moments when we really should have scored and at least taken some momentum out of the game but we never got a foothold.

“In the second half we never really made an impact, there was a bit of desperation about us trying to get into the game rather than playing our football.”

Moments after the immense Cantwell fired the ball through the legs of Celtic keeper Joe Hart, Celtic striker Oh Hyeon-gyu, chosen in place of Kyogo Furuhashi, was set up by Liel Abada.

However, with only Gers keeper Robby McCrorie to beat, he chipped the ball off the post with the home defence recovering.

Postecoglou said: “It is a big moment, absolutely.

“They were up for it, the crowd were up for it and they got the goal and if we can hit back straight away it takes a bit of the momentum out of them.

“It is a goal the big man probably should have put away, he hit the post so he wasn’t far off. It is a bit of learning for him as well.

“When he looks at somebody like Kyogo Furuhashi, he misses goals too but he doesn’t let it affect him, he is still running his socks off for the team.”

There were no Celtic fans in the stadium due to “safety and security” issues, as was the case for Rangers when they visited the east end of Glasgow in April, but Postecoglou did not use that as an excuse.

He said: “I don’t think the fans could have done anything about our performance. It is not the first time we have played here without fans.”

Michael Beale believes Rangers’ convincing 3-0 home win over Celtic in the final Old Firm clash of the season will give everyone at Ibrox “oxygen” going into next season.

Goals from Todd Cantwell, John Souttar and Fashion Sakala gave Beale his first victory over the treble-chasing Hoops in five attempts since taking over from Giovanni van Bronckhorst as Gers manager last November.

Beale, who was assistant coach to Steven Gerrard during his spell as Gers boss, will revamp his squad in the summer but believes the victory over the cinch Premiership champions can have a knock-on effect.

He said: “Listen, I was here for a long time in a different period where (we) played a lot of these games.

“It’s my 16th, 17th game against Celtic so I’m not new to the fixture.

“I was two minutes away from it in January (a 2-2 draw) and you think the next one will come quick.

“I think it gives us some oxygen going into the summer and the exciting period we have now of recruiting some players in.

“I still think this current group are capable of big performances. They put a decent one in today.

“When we analyse the games back we have had games against Celtic this season where we have had more possession. We’ve had chances and not taken them.

“Today we had slightly less possession because were in a two-goal lead quite early and it was their game to chase. I felt Rabbi (Matondo) and Fashion were getting in behind.

“Games at this level are fine margins between two teams like us and Celtic. It comes down to the boxes and we have made some mistakes.

“Today, for our third goal, they have made a big mistake and we have punished them.

“That’s it. I don’t want to talk about the work we’ve got to do or how far it is, it’s just three points.

“Let’s take it and I think it gives the fans some oxygen and breathing space too, looking forward to the summer.”

With three fixtures remaining Rangers are 10 points behind the Hoops, who will clinch the treble if they beat Championship side Inverness in the Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park on June 3.

Beale rebuffed the notion, however, that the result was any sort of warning to their city rivals.

The former QPR boss said: “No, I don’t think they need that. I think they’ll try and improve and we will too.

“We are the team with the most to improve aren’t we?

“It’s nothing more than three points today, I think over the course of the season we deserved today.”