Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers praised his side for dealing with the pressure after coming from behind to snatch a last-gasp win over Motherwell.
Motherwell deservedly led at half-time through Blair Spittal’s impressive goal but substitute Adam Idah quickly headed Celtic level after the break.
Celtic forced Motherwell back in the final quarter of the game and the pressure told four minutes into stoppage time when Idah stabbed home Alistair Johnston’s pass.
Luis Palma quickly added another to seal a 3-1 victory which cut the gap at the top of the table back to two points.
Rangers had moved five in front with a 5-0 win over Hearts on Saturday and Celtic faced a big challenge at half-time after dropping four points in their previous three league matches.
Rodgers admitted there was an anxiety in his side’s first-half passing but he added: “It was more the football and the performance, we were arriving into areas too early which gave players less options on the ball, that meant the passes were longer and they were looking into depth too much.
“Sometimes that happens in the game, so at half-time it was just about staying calm, reinforce the good bits of the game, but actually where we needed to adapt in order to connect the game.
“That is what this team is about. It’s about running and connecting the game fast, lots of passes, getting it out to the sides, making runs in behind, getting crosses into the box from half space wide areas.
“Technically, we needed to make some adjustments, but all at the same time, stay calm. Stay calm, because it’s one goal in it and I know this team and I know this club.
“The players were magnificent second half, I’ve got to say, under the pressure of being behind. They dealt with it really well.”
Rodgers was delighted with the impact of his subs with Yang Hyun-jun and Cameron Carter-Vickers coming off the bench to good effect following the half-time introduction of Idah for Kyogo Furuhashi.
“He scores two brilliant goals,” Rodgers said. “His first one is an amazing header – it’s a great cross by Greg (Taylor) but his header is absolutely brilliant. And then obviously he makes his first-post run and gets the second one.
“I think the guys coming into the game made a really good impact. Yang was good, he gave us the width and attacked on the outside and created space for the passes inside. Palma comes in and scores a goal as well, gets into the second post for the cross.”
On Carter-Vickers, Rodgers added: “You see when he comes into the game, there’s no trouble.
“The big guy up front (Theo Bair) gave us a problem in the first half with his strength and his size, and Cam comes in and just controls that side of it and allows us to play and get forward quicker, because he’s controlling that along with Scalesy (Liam Scales). So, him coming back is huge for us.”
Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell was frustrated over the “miscommunication” that saw two players dragged to the ball to leave Johnston free to set up Idah’s second.
And he will work on getting his players conditioned for 90 minutes after taking off four young players and Dan Casey, who pulled up after making a sliding tackle.
“Once we start to see one or two feeling for hamstrings and thighs, it shows the opposition can grow momentum,” he said.
“Ideally, how we were performing defensively, I would rather keep that structure and personnel on there. But I felt we were forced into one or two changes through necessity.
“One or two young guys in the team, even the senior players, we have to work towards being able to condition ourselves to play 96 minutes.
“It’s not just your body, it’s your head and being switched on to it. I have to identify what I felt cost us at least a point.”
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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