Celtic drew a blank against St Johnstone and needed two excellent second-half saves from Joe Hart to prevent the Perth side pulling off a shock win.
Dimitar Mitov celebrated his first call-up to the Bulgaria squad by making a hat-trick of saves from Matt O’Riley, who should probably have done better with at least two of the chances.
But Celtic otherwise struggled to test the Saints goalkeeper in a flat goalless display and only mustered five shots on target in total.
The visitors handed out three debuts after losing their previous four matches, but they looked compact before both Dara Costelloe and substitute Stevie May were denied by Hart.
The draw keeps Celtic a point ahead of Rangers in the cinch Premiership, but a second below-par performance in a row following their Viaplay Cup defeat at Kilmarnock did little for their confidence ahead of their of their trip to Ibrox next Sunday.
Celtic had a new-look central defence amid injuries to all other options. Gustaf Lagerbielke was handed his home debut while Liam Scales made his first Celtic appearance in 18 months after spending last season on loan at Aberdeen.
Alistair Johnston made his first appearance of the season after an ankle injury, while David Turnbull and Yang Hyun-jun came in.
St Johnstone manager Steven MacLean handed debuts to loan signings Luke Robinson, Jay Turner-Cooke and Costelloe.
MacLean had bluntly told his players their previous performance at Ross County was unacceptable and he dropped captain Liam Gordon and May to the bench, while there was no place for Ryan McGowan.
Johnston set up the first chance, which Kyogo Furuhashi swept just wide first time.
Turnbull’s deft corner was met on the volley by O’Riley, only for Mitov to push the ball over the crossbar and the Denmark Under-21 international had another effort stopped before setting up Yang to blaze over.
St Johnstone’s only half-chance in the first 45 minutes fell for Luke Jephcott, who sliced wide from Graham Carey’s free-kick.
O’Riley had his best chance early in the second half when Johnston’s cutback found him unmarked, but the midfielder again could not beat Mitov from close range.
It was clear Celtic needed a spark come the hour mark and Brendan Rodgers put on Anthony Ralston, Sead Haksabanovic and Liel Abada.
Haksabanovic, playing in a number 10 role, soon set up O’Riley, but the midfielder was stretching with his right foot and missed the target.
Gordon replaced the injured Considine in the Saints central defence before Mitov turned Haksabanovic’s 25-yard strike past the post.
Saints almost stunned the home fans with their first attack of the half. Costelloe flicked the ball over Scales on the byline and volleyed an effort which was heading for the top corner, only for Hart to flick out his hand and divert it behind for a corner.
Furuhashi hit a half-chance wide before Saints had another great chance when Carey sent May clear. Hart narrowed the angle and blocked the shot before Carey sent the rebound over.
Substitute James Forrest headed Ralston’s cross over, but there was no late onslaught and Mitov saved comfortably from Abada during eight minutes of stoppage-time before the final whistle was met by boos among the home fans.
Postecoglou confident Tottenham players will enjoy controversial Australia trip
Ange Postecoglou believes his Tottenham players will enjoy the experience of facing Newcastle United in Melbourne, despite the post-season trip attracting fierce criticism from some quarters.
Spurs face Newcastle at Melbourne Cricket Ground on Wednesday, just three days after they rounded off their Premier League season with a 3-0 win at Sheffield United.
The trip has been strongly criticised on player welfare grounds, with former Newcastle striker Alan Shearer describing it as "madness".
Last year, a report from global players' union Fifpro warned fixture congestion was at "dangerous" levels and said more must be done to protect players.
Despite the negativity surrounding the fixture, Postecoglou believes his players will relish walking out at Australia's most iconic sporting venue.
"I said to the lads, 'I know it's a long way but I think you'll enjoy playing at the G'," Postecoglou said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"It's not easy because we played Sheffield on Sunday afternoon and we basically got straight on the plane to come out here.
"So we all lost Monday from our lives, but we're here now and hopefully when the boys walk out tomorrow night and there's 80,000 people at the 'G', the rest of it is irrelevant, and I'm sure they are looking forward to it."
Sunday's win at Bramall Lane ensured Tottenham finished fifth in the Premier League table, securing Europa League qualification for next season.
Postecoglou does not think fixture congestion will hamper them in 2024-25, saying the absence of European football set Spurs back in their first campaign under him.
"That's the reward for finishing strong this year so I think we're looking forward to that," he said.
"It's another challenge for us and we'll be ready for it. I think not having European football this year cost us a bit in terms of our development.
"This club deserves to be in Europe and hopefully we can make an impact next year."
Salah hints at Liverpool stay, pays tribute to Klopp
Mohamed Salah has hinted he will still be a Liverpool player next season while paying tribute to departed manager Jurgen Klopp.
Klopp's nine-year reign on Merseyside came to an end with Sunday's 2-0 win over Wolves, with Liverpool ending his final campaign at the helm third in the Premier League.
Arne Slot was subsequently confirmed as his successor on Monday, but doubts have been raised as to whether Salah would play under the Dutchman.
Salah's form dropped off alarmingly in the second half of the campaign and he became involved in a public bust-up with Klopp last month, heightening speculation that he could depart as he enters the final 12 months of his contract.
However, Salah seemed to rule out that prospect as he vowed to lead Liverpool to more silverware next term, after their efforts in 2023-24 only amounted to February's EFL Cup win.
"We know that trophies are what count and we will do everything possible to make that happen next season." Salah wrote in a post on X.
"Our fans deserve it and we will fight like hell."
Alongside an image of himself with Klopp, he wrote in a separate post: "It was great sharing all those trophies and experiences with you over the past seven years.
"I wish you the best of luck for the future and hope we meet again."
Salah scored 18 Premier League goals in 2023-24, making it the least prolific campaign of his seven-year stint at Anfield.
Fourteen of those goals came before he went to the Africa Cup of Nations with Egypt in January, where he sustained a hamstring injury that troubled him throughout the second half of the campaign.
Sunday's victory over Wolves represented Salah's 250th Premier League appearance for Liverpool.
His overall tally of 223 Premier League goal involvements for the Reds (155 goals, 68 assists) are the second-most by any player in their first 250 appearances for a club in the competition, with Thierry Henry managing 243 for Arsenal (171 goals, 72 assists).
Montero hails Juventus fight as stunning comeback denies Bologna
Interim Juventus boss Paolo Montero praised his players' fight after they recovered from 3-0 down in the final 14 minutes to claim a 3-3 draw against Bologna in Serie A on Monday.
Juventus sacked Massimiliano Allegri last week in the aftermath of their Coppa Italia final victory over Atalanta, citing his fiery behaviour as a major factor in their decision.
On Monday, they came up against the man tipped to replace him in Bologna coach Thiago Motta, who saw his team race into a 3-0 lead within 53 minutes.
However, Federico Chiesa's 76th-minute effort kickstarted a stunning turnaround, with Arkadiusz Milik's free-kick soon after teeing up a grandstand finale.
Kenan Yildiz then scored an 84th-minute equaliser as the Bianconeri avoided defeat after trailing by three goals for the first time in their Serie A history.
While they have drawn each of their last six league games and could slip outside the top four on the final matchday, Montero believes they deserve credit for their efforts.
"In my view, the draw was the fair result," Montero told DAZN.
"The victory on Wednesday was important, mentally it drained them and to come here against one of the best teams at the moment like Bologna, you are going to struggle.
"After that dip in mentality, they fought back with pride and showed how much they care about the shirt."
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