Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers admits they need to take something from the visit of Atletico Madrid to progress in Europe.

But Rodgers is well aware of the European experience of Diego Simeone and his team and the need to be “intelligent” with their pressure.

Celtic have produced largely encouraging performances in their opening two Champions League games but they sit on zero points, three behind Feyenoord and four behind Atletico and Lazio.

Atletico were seconds away from winning in Rome and have a strong recent pedigree in Europe, which includes reaching two Champions League finals and winning the Europa League three times since 2010.

Rodgers said: “We play every game to win but your pressure always has to be educated. We want to be intense but we have to press the game with an intelligence as well, because they have top-level players.

“It’s important for us, if we are going to progress at any point in any of the competitions, we have to take something from the game, otherwise it’s a hugely difficult challenge for us.

“But we are excited about the challenge and I am really looking forward to seeing how we take that challenge on.

“This is a team that knows their way around European football, they are fighting for the Spanish title.

“But we just have to go and play our game and look to be brave and play with that courage we have been playing with, and see if we can pose them some problems.”

The former Liverpool and Leicester manager added: “I actually think we will have a lot of the ball. In terms of how Atletico play, they will press us in certain sectors of the game.

“But Diego always sets his teams up to play in a lower block in the main, which means it’s very, very difficult to break through.

“I think we will still have a good amount of possession but we have obviously devised a plan that will help us give them things to think about.”

Celtic’s chances in Rotterdam were undone by losing a soft goal from a free-kick on the stroke of half-time before getting two players sent off.

They took the lead against Lazio and looked to have won the game late on only to be denied by a marginal offside decision, before conceding deep into stoppage time. Rodgers will aim to use the frustration of that finale to drive his players on.

“The Lazio game was a real indication of the level,” he said. “We played very well but one moment at the end of the game costs you the points.

“That’s a reminder of the level but it doesn’t stop you being persistent and looking to fight. The fans expect us to fight and run in order to play quality football. That’s the style of this team and we will continue to do that.

“It’s life, isn’t it? Adversity is some of the best learning that you have. The pain was numbing at the end because we didn’t feel we deserved that, but I don’t want to be taking condolences after losing games of football. I respect the level we are at and it’s up to us to see if we can be more progressive in our results.

“One of the biggest things at this level is concentration. If you drop your guard for a second, you can get punished.

“We have shown, especially in the Lazio game, we can create opportunities and our goal was fantastic.

“I always say concentration at this level is huge and finishing your opportunities when you get them.

“We have to have that collective mentality, a green and white block moving up the pitch, everyone together and pressing and passing how we want to.

“If we can do that and keep that concentration, we have a great chance against any team, especially at home.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers wants his team to show they can take on the best in the world when they host Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.

The Hoops are looking for their first points of the Champions League campaign after going down against Feyenoord with nine men and losing to a last-gasp goal against Lazio after being denied the lead for a second time by a marginal offside decision.

Rodgers said: “We are playing one of the top clubs in the world and one of the best teams.

“We want to be able to take on the best teams in the world. We don’t have to be the best in the world but we certainly want to be able to take them on.”

Celtic warmed up with a dominant display in Sunday’s 4-1 win over Hearts.

“The players will go into it with great confidence,” Rodgers said.

“It will be an amazing atmosphere, we will try to start with energy and quality and devise a plan.

“The players have been unfortunate they haven’t picked up something. In the two games the performance level has been good, considering we had nine men against Feyenoord and the last game was hugely frustrating.

“But a great chance to play against a really good team and see if we can get our first points on the board.”

In-form midfielder Matt O’Riley will go into the game with a positive mindset after hitting his sixth goal of the season in style at Tynecastle.

The 22-year-old said: “If we play well and take our chances, and we believe we can do it, then anything is possible.

“We have seen that before in previous Champions League games in the past, I think performance is definitely there, it’s just a matter of being ruthless in both boxes to be honest.”

England and Scotland’s Champions League representatives return to action this week with some looking to maintain momentum and others determined to kick-start their campaigns.

Holders Manchester City and Newcastle currently top their respective groups while Arsenal are well placed after two games, but Manchester United and Celtic are yet to open their accounts.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the teams the British contenders face in the latest round of fixtures.

Manchester United v Copenhagen (Tuesday)

 

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Danish champions Copenhagen began their campaign in the second qualifying round, easing past Iceland’s Breidablik 8-3 on aggregate, but were extended much further to secure their place in the play-offs as they drew 0-0 with Sparta Prague at the Parken Stadium before progressing 4-2 on penalties after an eventful 3-3 draw in the Czech capital.

Polish champions Rakow Czestochowa provided the opposition as they fought for a place in the group stage and a 1-0 away win in the first leg proved decisive as the sides drew 1-1 in Denmark in the return.

Copenhagen are currently a point clear of Silkeborg and Brondby at the top of the Danish Superliga, but have won only once in their last four games in all competitions – Saturday’s 2-1 home victory over lowly Vejle BK.

They launched their Group A campaign with a 2-2 draw at Galatasaray, where they led 2-0 before defender Elias Jelert was sent off and were beaten 2-1 at home by Bayern Munich last time out, having gone ahead once again.

The game could prove something of a family affair for United striker Rasmus Hojlund, 20, who could come up against 18-year-old twin brothers Oscar and Emil, both part of former club Copenhagen’s squad for the competition.

Sevilla v Arsenal (Tuesday)

Sevilla are making their ninth appearance in the group stage and qualified as a result of extending their record as UEFA Cup or Europa League winners to seven with a penalty shoot-out victory over Roma in last season’s final in Budapest.

They have not made it to the last 16 in their last two attempts and welcome the Gunners to the Estadio Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan, having drawn both their Group B fixtures to date.

The Spaniards led French side Lens 1-0 at home in their opener courtesy of Lucas Ocampos’ early strike, but had to settle for a point after Angelo Fulgini levelled and they were pegged back once again in a dramatic conclusion to their trip to PSV Eindhoven, where they were 1-0 up and 2-1 ahead before Jordan Teze snatched a 2-2 draw deep into stoppage time.

Sevilla, who lost to Manchester City on penalties in August’s European Super Cup clash in Athens, finished 11th in last season’s LaLiga table, 39 points adrift of champions Barcelona and again find themselves in mid-table.

They have won only two of their 12 games in all competitions to date this season, but drew a second-successive league game on Saturday, when visitors Real Madrid needed a Daniel Carvajal equaliser to emerge with a point.

Celtic v Atletico Madrid (Wednesday)

 

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Twice runners-up – on both occasions to derby rivals Real Madrid – Atletico have genuine Champions League pedigree, although they failed to make the last 16 for the first time in five seasons in 2022-23.

The sides have met on six previous occasions in European competition with the Spaniards having come out on top four times, the last of them a 1-0 Europa League victory at Celtic Park in November 2011, with the Scottish champions’ only reward two draws.

Atleti currently top Group E on goals scored ahead of Lazio with both sides on four points and Feyenoord a point behind.

They drew 1-1 in Rome – where the Serie A side were indebted to goalkeeper Ivan Provedel’s last-gasp equaliser – and twice came from behind at the Estadio Metropolitano, where Alvaro Morata’s double either side of an Antoine Griezmann strike secured a 3-2 victory over the Dutchmen.

Diego Simeone’s men head into the game on the back of a six-match winning run culminating in Saturday’s 3-0 league victory at Celta Vigo.

Newcastle v Borussia Dortmund (Wednesday)

Last season’s Bundesliga runners-up, Dortmund were European champions in 1997 and went down 2-1 to compatriots Bayern Munich in the 2013 final.

They have made it to the knockout stage of the Champions League in eight of their 10 most recent campaigns, but went out to Chelsea in the round of 16 last season.

Their record in England, however, does not augur well with seven of their last eight visits having ended in defeat – both the Blues and Manchester City got the better of them last season.

Dortmund have collected just a single point from their two Group F outings to date, but are yet to find the back of the net following a 2-0 defeat at Paris St Germain and a 0-0 home draw with AC Milan.

However, the reverse in Paris remains the only one they have suffered in 11 games in all competitions and they have won their last five league games – the most recent of them a 1-0 victory over Werder Bremen on Friday – to sit two points adrift of early leaders Bayer Leverkusen.

Young Boys v Manchester City (Wednesday)

The Swiss champions are playing in the Champions League for the 10th time having missed out on a place in last season’s Europa League after a play-off defeat by Anderlecht.

They collected five points from their six games on their last appearance in 2021-22 and finished bottom of their group as a result.

Young Boys won their first home Champions League game against an English club – Tottenham in a 2010-11 play-off – but eventually went down 6-3 on aggregate and their last, a 2-1 victory over Manchester United in September 2021 on a night when Cristiano Ronaldo scored but Aaron Wan-Bissaka was sent off.

They went down 3-1 at home to Leipzig in their opening fixture, but were denied victory at Red Star Belgrade when Osman Bukari’s late goal ensured it ended 2-2.

They are unbeaten in four games in all competitions, but were held to a goalless home draw by FC Zurich on Saturday.

Both Celtic and Rangers enjoyed comfortable wins in a cinch Premiership fixture card hit by Storm Babet.

The Hoops completed a Glasgow double over Edinburgh after three matches were called off for safety reasons.

Here, the PA news agency looks at five things we learned from the reduced schedule.

Happy honeymoon for Philippe Clement

Rangers fans wanted to see something different under Belgian manager Philippe Clement and they certainly did in a 4-0 Ibrox win against Hibernian. Michael Beale had been criticised for the ponderous style of his Gers side but Clement’s version played at high tempo and got the ball forward quicker. The manager himself declared himself “happy” but not yet impressed. “Impressed is a big word,” he said. “I still saw a lot of details we can make better but I saw a team who stayed well in the structure and made the runs and the tempo we played at. It is like the honeymoon. Everything is new. They need to confirm this the next week, the next month.”

Nick Montgomery felt Clement was too keen

Hibernian manager Nick Montgomery felt Clement’s debut should have been largely watched from the stand after accusing the Rangers boss of stepping on the pitch and controlling the ball before it went out. Referencing a red card for Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes against Dundee in similar circumstances, Montgomery was surprised to see the Gers manager get away with it. He told BBC Scotland: “I think everyone can see the ball had not gone out. When that happens, you probably think it’s not going to be your day because at that point they have 12 men on the pitch. The worst thing about it was they got the throw-in. Away at Ibrox you don’t expect any favours, but that’s not within the laws of the game.”

Celtic hitting top gear

The Hoops restored their seven-point lead with a 4-1 win over Hearts at Tynecastle. Normally a tricky venue, the champions took the sting out the game inside four minutes when Matt O’Riley met Luis Palma’s lofted pass on the volley. Brendan Rodgers’ side dominated the bulk of the game to take their winning league run to six matches. If they come through another trip to Edinburgh next weekend when they face Hibs, there is a strong chance they will go on to extend their seven-point lead before hosting Rangers on December 30.

Tynecastle tickets decision has mixed results

Hearts more than halved Celtic’s usual allocation of tickets to 576 but the Tynecastle atmosphere was not at its usual level after O’Riley’s early opener. The crowd of 17,608 was the lowest league attendance at Tynecastle this season and some Celtic fans watching on television would no doubt have been frustrated at the sight of a virtually-empty section right next to the away support in the Roseburn Stand.

Kyle Vassell shows his worth for Kilmarnock

Kilmarnock captain Kyle Vassell’s double proved the difference in a 3-1 win over Livingston which ended a seven-game run without victory and lifted them into fifth place following a weather-hit fixture card. Vassell came into the league campaign still finding his fitness following a knee injury but he now has three goals in the Premiership.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers hailed his players for meeting their Tynecastle challenge with some “wonderful football” in a 4-1 win over Hearts.

The cinch Premiership leaders restored their seven-point lead with a largely dominant display in front of 576 of their own fans in a reduced allocation and more than 17,000 Hearts supporters.

Matt O’Riley volleyed his sixth goal of the season inside four minutes and Celtic remained in control. Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi netted before the 51st minute and Reo Hatate hit the post with a penalty.

Lawrence Shankland pulled one back in the 64th minute but substitute Tomoki Iwata fired his first goal for Celtic to kill off any slim hopes of a comeback.

Rodgers said: “It was important that we started the game well, and try to bring an energy and speed to the game which would make it difficult for Hearts, because I have been here enough times to know that if you don’t make a good start here it can be a challenge.

“But the players played some wonderful football and worked ever so hard.”

Celtic have now won six consecutive league matches and appear to be finding more fluidity in their play.

Rodgers said: “It’s a constant evolution, there’s not a destination to where we want to go, it’s just continual improvement and finding levels and the big thing is consistency.

“It’s obviously a very difficult ground to come to but I love challenges like this, coming to really hostile environments because it’s an opportunity for you to show your value as a team, dealing with difficult circumstances, and the players dealt with it ever so well.

“The only criticism is we could have scored more goals and managed the ball a bit better after we scored the fourth goal, so we didn’t have to run so much.

“But overall, after an international break, where a lot of these guys were a wee bit heavy-legged towards the end, a lot of travel, what they gave the game was absolutely brilliant.”

Hearts manager Steven Naismith bemoaned his side’s start and the way they allowed Celtic chances.

Naismith started with a positive line-up with Kenneth Vargas told to run beyond Shankland and Alan Forrest and Alex Lowry supporting the front players. But their chances when undermined when O’Riley ran away from marker Calem Nieuwenhof and volleyed home Luis Palma’s lofted pass.

“We gave up really sloppy goals,” said Naismith, whose team let slip a two-goal lead against Hibernian in their previous match.

“That’s the last two games that the goals we conceded are not at the level where we should be at and want to be at. How sloppy they were and when we concede them is mental.

“It doesn’t give you a chance to get into the game when you lose a goal after three minutes. And that was the theme throughout the game, the goals are avoidable.

“Our intensity when we are pressing and closing down wasn’t good enough and in the game there are split-seconds when players are making decisions and ultimately they are going to decide if it’s a good action or bad action. Every goal we picked the wrong action.”

Matt O’Riley scored his sixth cinch Premiership goal of the season to send Celtic on their way to a comfortable 4-1 win over Hearts.

O’Riley volleyed home brilliantly early on and Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi added further goals as Celtic thoroughly dominated for the first hour at Tynecastle.

Lawrence Shankland pulled a goal back but substitute Tomoki Iwata hit his first goal for Celtic to finish the hosts off in the 81st minute.

Reo Hatate missed a penalty in what was otherwise an impressive performance from the Celtic midfielder.

Hearts were looking to build on two wins and a draw in their previous three games. But an unchanged Celtic side restored their seven-point lead at the top of the table 24 hours after Philippe Clement enjoyed a 4-0 win over Hibernian in his first match as Rangers manager.

Hearts had more than halved Celtic’s usual allocation to 576 fans, many of whom displayed Palestine flags before kick-off, to allow more home supporters to attend. However, the section nearest the visiting support in the Roseburn Stand was virtually empty and the 17,608 crowd was comfortably Hearts’ lowest in the league this season.

The atmosphere was punctured inside four minutes as O’Riley ran off marker Calem Nieuwenhof and watched Luis Palma’s lofted pass drop over his shoulder before volleying into the far corner.

Hearts rallied briefly. Joe Hart pushed a Kenneth Vargas strike past his near post and Alex Cochrane sent a dangerous ball across the face of the Celtic goal.

Celtic were largely in control and Zander Clark saved well from Maeda before the Japan attacker doubled the lead midway through the half. Nieuwenhof was again at fault, gifting possession to Celtic not long before Hatate played a one-two with O’Riley to get beyond the home defence and drill a cross which Maeda bundled home from close range.

Celtic remained well on top and Hatate hit the post from the spot in the first minute of the second half after Cochrane had been harshly penalised by Nick Walsh when Furuhashi got his body in front of the left-back and went down.

Hatate atoned for his miss in the 51st minute with a wonderful flick which sent Palma racing down the left flank. Celtic players were queuing up to meet the Honduran winger’s low cross and Furuhashi swept the ball high into the net.

Hatate soon came close himself but Hearts improved after Beni Baningime and Yutaro Oda replaced Nieuwenhof and Alex Lowry, who had both struggled.

Shankland forced a decent parry from Hart just before curling in off the post in the 64th minute after Maeda had gifted him possession 20 yards from goal.

Shankland and Alan Forrest threatened as Hearts continued to respond but Iwata sparked a mass exodus of Hearts fans when he fired in off the bar from 18 yards after Clark had denied another Hoops substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu.

Clark made an excellent stop from Oh to spare the home fans further pain and the Celtic support saluted manager Brendan Rodgers in song in stoppage time.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has called for a minimum percentage of away supporters to be enshrined in league rules as he prepares to take his team to what will be an even more hostile atmosphere inside Tynecastle.

Celtic will have 576 fans in attendance for Sunday’s game against Hearts with the home club keen to get more of their own supporters inside the ground following rising demand for tickets in recent years.

The allocation is less than half of what Celtic received in their previous visit and a continuation of a trend.

Rodgers was used to seeing the Roseburn Stand half full of Celtic supporters in his first spell in charge, which included his first domestic game as manager and the game where his side clinched his first title. But previously Celtic fans occupied the whole of the stand behind the goal.

The likes of Aberdeen, Hearts and Hibernian previously took bigger supports to Glasgow too but they have long been restricted to less than two per cent of Celtic Park and Ibrox in allocations measured in hundreds.

The Tynecastle allocation has continued debate over away allocations which has been most starkly felt when Celtic face Rangers in recent seasons.

The tradition of handing about 7,500 tickets to the away team was abandoned by Rangers and fears over the safety of an away following in the hundreds have meant the fixture has been home fans only in recent matches.

The likes of Aberdeen, St Mirren and Kilmarnock have also cut the allocations for Celtic and Rangers fans in recent seasons.

The issue will likely be revisited ahead of Celtic’s New Year derby with Rangers likely to be rebuffed in their request for tickets after the Hoops won at Ibrox earlier this season with no fans present.

Scottish Professional Football League rules are currently vague, stating that a home club must provide tickets for a “reasonable number of visiting supporters…. as may be agreed in advance with the visiting club”. The SPFL board will determine the number if no agreement is reached but that situation has never occurred.

Rodgers accepted Hearts’ right to cut the allocation but he hopes the rules can be made clearer for everyone’s benefit, echoing similar calls from his Hearts counterpart Steven Naismith.

“Every club has got every right at this moment in time, to issue what they want to give to away supporters,” the Celtic manager said.

“Until there is something standardised, Hearts are more than willing to do that.

“Of course as a Celtic manager I love to see more supporters in there of course because they come from all over the place to follow their team.

“But hopefully we can standardise a certain percentage for away supporters and that allows all the supporters of all the teams to be able to go and watch their teams.

“Around some of the grounds, in my first time here and even now…the idea is, of course, if there is more away allocation it allows the ground to be filled, and obviously to give money and resources to the away team, then of course we would like to be able to do that.

“But I also understand it from a football perspective why maybe you wouldn’t want so many away supporters in.

“But hopefully the federation can standardise a number and then we all know where we stand.”

Rodgers backed his team to handle the atmosphere.

“Any team playing away, it’s always nice to have a fairly large group of your supporters there to give you that backing but if they are not there, then we can’t use that as an excuse,” he said.

“We have shown already with no supporters that we can get big results. We will be very much together and the 500-odd supporters that will be there, hopefully we can give them a good day.”

A row between the Celtic board and a section of supporters over the Middle East conflict looks set to run after a fan group hit back at the club.

Celtic earlier condemned banners which were displayed in the standing section at their stadium during Saturday’s win over Kilmarnock.

But the Green Brigade have now called on supporters to display Palestine flags during their upcoming Champions League game against Atletico Madrid as Israel continues its airstrikes and blockade of Gaza.

Celtic’s Israel international, Liel Abada, meanwhile, issued thanks to those who had sent messages of support in the wake of the Hamas attack on his country.

Abada’s Israel and former Celtic team-mate Nir Bitton had hit out at supporters on Saturday after they flew flags and displayed banners which read “Free Palestine” and “Victory to the Resistance”.

The club issued a statement on Monday which condemned and disassociated themselves from the banners.

A statement added: “Celtic is a football club and not a political organisation. One of our core values from inception is to be open to all regardless of race, colour, politics or creed.

“That is why the club has always made clear that political messages and banners are not welcome at Celtic Park, or any match involving Celtic.

“At a time of loss and suffering for many, it is entirely inappropriate for any group of individuals to use Celtic Park as a vehicle for such messages.

“We call on all supporters, regardless of their personal views, to unite in backing our players and the club while respecting the rights and beliefs of others; particularly those whose lives are affected by violence and hatred.”

Abada, 22, who is currently sidelined by a thigh injury, wrote on Instagram on Tuesday: “It is difficult to explain the range of emotions I feel at the moment we woke up to one of the darkest days in the history of my country.

“I would like to thank everybody sending me supportive messages on social media over the last couple of days. It is not taken for granted. My heart goes out to all the families who lost their loved ones. Praying for more peaceful days. Love you all.”

However, the Green Brigade have reiterated their “unshakeable belief” that football supporters have the right to express political beliefs and accused the Celtic board of being disingenuous and hypocritical over their claim that the club was apolitical, citing issues over the club’s history and the war in Ukraine.

The lengthy statement finished by calling on Celtic fans on October 25 against Atletico to “raise the Palestine flag on the European stage and show the world that Celtic Football Club stands with the oppressed, not the oppressor”.

The club have been fined by UEFA on several occasions because supporters have flown Palestine flags.

In 2016, the Green Brigade raised more than £130,000 in an online fundraising campaign after Celtic were fined nearly £9,000 by UEFA due to fans flying Palestine flags during their 5-2 Champions League victory against Israel’s Hapoel Be’er Sheva in Glasgow.

The money went to medical aid for Palestinians and projects in the Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem, where a football academy was set up bearing the name of Celtic.

Brendan Rodgers believes Luis Palma is gradually becoming more accustomed to the demands of playing for Celtic.

The Honduran scored his team’s second goal in the 3-1 win over Kilmarnock in what was his first Premiership start since arriving from Aris Thessaloniki in August.

Rodgers felt it was unrealistic to expect new signings to be “perfect right away” and revealed he was looking only for incremental improvement.

The Celtic manager said: “The players at the top end of the pitch have to create and score goals, that’s their contribution.

“But Luis is settling in very well. These guys are coming from different climates and cultures.

“People feel the need for them to be perfect right away. I don’t, it’s all about adaptability.

“If they feed into the club’s winning mentality, they’ll improve here.

“You see with Palma, he’s getting better game by game. He was excellent today and scored a very good goal.

“He was dangerous. He played his part in a very good collective performance.”

Kilmarnock got a goal back through David Watson with the score at 2-0, but Rodgers believed a foul should have been awarded in the build-up.

He added: “We had the ball on the edge of the box, Greg Taylor was manhandled by their guy to the ground and we didn’t get a foul.

“The VAR only started when the play went forward. They scored from the position Greg would have been in.

“I don’t like talking about referees, but we’ve now got a whole team of people looking at it. The ref doesn’t see it, he had his back to the play. By the time he turned around, the foul was committed.

“But a guy on the line can see it, like me. On top of that, there’s a VAR team watching it with a cup of tea and no drama. They still didn’t see it.”

Celtic had a penalty award overturned by the VAR following a coming-together between Reo Hatate and Watson.

Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes – who would not address speculation linking him with the Rangers managerial vacancy – felt the Japanese midfielder had embellished any contact.

He said: “My first thought was that Hatate has gone down far too easily. For me, he’s waiting for contact. But I don’t think there was any contact. If I’m wrong then I’ll apologise.

“But for me, it’s trying to buy a penalty and the referee has bought it as I thought he would. I thought, ‘he’s going to give a penalty here’ and he did.

“My heart sank and then VAR overturned it. But that’s far too easy to go down, far too easy from Hatate. That’s poor.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers praised his players’ resolve in their 3-1 win over Kilmarnock.

Goals from Reo Hatate, Luis Palma and Greg Taylor sent the champions seven points clear at the top of the cinch Premiership and made David Watson’s strike – that made it 2-1 – no more than a consolation.

Rodgers admitted there had been a period of “grieving” following the midweek Champions League defeat to Lazio but credited the squad for not letting it affect them upon their return to league duty.

He said: “I’m really pleased with the performance today off the back of the game during the week.

“We could all touch the pain of that result because our display didn’t merit it.

“But it’s about how you respond. You grieve for 24 hours, I sensed it from everyone, the players and the supporters. But you need to show strength of mentality to get back to winning again.

“We showed that today because we switched back to perform well today. The players deserve credit for that.”

Hatate’s goal crowned an excellent individual performance and Rodgers revealed he had sat down with the Japan international earlier in the week to speak about his intensity levels.

He added: “This was the first game that Reo has come alive for me. He has to press the game and when he is at that level, then he is intense with the ball. He scored a brilliant goal and he was superb.

“I went through things with him the other day. If he wants to get to the highest level, there needs to be more intensity in his game. I took him through clips of his game, all without the ball.

“If you press the game well you will pass it well. But he took it on board, was very open and produced a fantastic performance today. That’s the level, you can’t switch the engine on and off.”

Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes felt that Celtic’s second goal, scored by Palma via a ricochet off Hatate, should have been ruled out.

He said: “Having seen the pictures for me it looks offside in the build-up when it bounces back off the Celtic player. So I’m disappointed with that as offside should be clear.

“When I saw it on the big screen I thought he was offside and when VAR were checking it I was expecting it to be chopped off.

“There might be better pictures in the VAR hub so any criticism of that at the minute is a wee bit contained as I’m just viewing it on the pictures that I’ve seen.

“I showed the referee the pictures that I’d seen. But they’re obviously dependent on the people in VAR looking at different angles.

“I saw an angle on my analyst’s laptop. Whether he’s a computer genius and has played around with the lines I don’t know. But it looked offside.”

Celtic bounced back from their Champions League disappointment by defeating Kilmarnock 3-1 at home in the cinch Premiership.

Brendan Rodgers’ men looked eager to atone for their midweek loss to Lazio and were two goals ahead at half-time through Reo Hatate and Luis Palma.

David Watson got one back for Kilmarnock midway through the second period before Greg Taylor added a third to send Celtic seven points clear at the top of the table after a fifth consecutive league win.

Rodgers made two changes from the Lazio match. In came Cameron-Carter Vickers and Palma, with Nathaniel Phillips and Hyun-jun Yang starting on the bench.

Kilmarnock also made two changes from their draw with St Mirren. There were starting places for Robbie Deas and Watson who replaced Innes Cameron and the injured Kyle Magennis.

Celtic started on top and had the ball in the net within five minutes but Kyogo Furuhashi had strayed into an offside position before finishing well.

Kilmarnock’s response was a curling effort from Danny Armstrong that arced beyond the far post before former Killie defender Taylor came close with a half-volley.

Celtic moved in front after 22 minutes after great play from Hatate. The Japanese fastened on to a quick free-kick from Callum McGregor, burst past Watson before finishing low in the corner.

Hatate almost came close to doubling his tally with an acrobatic volley that was well saved before Palma stretched Celtic’s lead after 33 minutes.

The winger attempted a pass to Hatate only for the ball to rebound back to the Honduran who took advantage to smash in an unstoppable shot.

Celtic started the second half again on the offensive and Hatate’s run and shot was deflected narrowly wide of goal by Kilmarnock defender Lewis Mayo.

Hatate then thought he had won a penalty after he and Watson tangled at the edge of the Kilmarnock box. Before it could be taken, however, the VAR, David Dickinson, asked referee Matthew MacDermid to have a second look and the decision was overturned.

Hatate was involved in most of Celtic’s promising attacks and only an alert save from William Dennis prevented him from adding a third goal.

Kilmarnock grabbed an unlikely lifeline after 72 minutes. Vassell and Alistair Johnston clashed as they chased down a long ball but play was allowed to go on and Liam Polworth teed up Watson who finished well.

The visitors passed up a good chance to draw level when Stuart Findlay nodded wide from a free-kick and that proved costly when Taylor tucked in Celtic’s third after Daizen Maeda had flicked on Matt O’Riley’s corner.

Maeda was then denied by Dennis after running the length of the pitch, with James Forrest unable to convert the rebound.

Celtic captain Callum McGregor has urged his team-mates to show they are hurting from their Champions League disappointment and take their frustration out on Kilmarnock.

Brendan Rodgers’ side thought they had gone in front late on through Luis Palma against Lazio on Wednesday, only for an offside decision to against them following a lengthy VAR check.

Their pain was exacerbated by conceding a goal five minutes into stoppage time as Pedro sealed a 2-1 win for the Italians.

Celtic are looking to bounce back at home to Killie on Saturday and extend their lead at the top of the cinch Premiership.

McGregor said: “There is only one thing guaranteed in football and that’s disappointment so the team that handles disappointment the best is generally the team that will go and be successful.

“So we have to show that, we have to show that we are hurt, recover well and come Saturday we put on a performance of high-energy, high-intensity football and show people that we are hurting, because we definitely did enough to deserve something out of the game on Wednesday night.

“Handling disappointment is part of football so we need to get back on the horse on Saturday.”

It was a second Champions League defeat for Celtic and their only domestic loss of the season, which came in the Viaplay Cup at Rugby Park, is on McGregor’s mind ahead of the visit of Derek McInnes and his team.

“You keep notes of those ones where you either drop points or you get beat,” the midfielder said.

“We want to try and put the record straight, for sure that will be on our mind come Saturday.”

Celtic right-back Alistair Johnston believes they can be a “really top team” if they sharpen up in both boxes but he accepts they are running out of chances in the Champions League.

The Scottish champions suffered defeat by the narrowest of margins against Lazio on Wednesday night.

Luis Palma was ruled offside by the VAR officials after thinking he had put Celtic 2-1 ahead in the 81st minute after it was decided that the ball skimmed off the leg of Daizen Maeda on its way to the winger.

Then Lazio got the crucial third goal of the night five minutes into stoppage time after former Chelsea and Barcelona forward Pedro won the ball back and headed home seconds later with the VAR officials ruling him just onside.

Celtic are on zero points from two matches after going down to nine men in an opening defeat by Feyenoord and now face a pivotal double-header against Atletico Madrid, who visit Glasgow on October 25 after beating the Dutch champions 3-2 to move on to four points.

Johnston said: “We still believe. I think we have shown we can play with anyone. That was a top team and we had a lot of spells with the ball where we were comfortable.

“But you need to find a way to turn that into wins because every match, especially when you go away in the Champions League, is going to be difficult.

“Our mind is still on getting out of this group and I still think there’s a chance but this next match becomes all the more important. We know that. You lose again and the ride is probably done.

“We need to really dig in and find a way in these next two games against Atletico to get some points on the board.”

Celtic took an early lead through Kyogo Furuhashi after a penetrating move but conceded an equaliser from a corner.

Johnston added: “We just need to get a little more ruthless in both boxes, in terms of defending our box and set-pieces, and just be a little more clinical.

“If we can add that element in both boxes I think we can be a really top team because we showed in the middle third that we can play with these teams.”

Celtic had looked the likelier team to get in front for most of the second half.

The Canada international said: “It felt really good second half, like we could move the ball around, we were comfortable, breaking through their press. We probably didn’t create as many clear-cut chances as we would have liked but we weren’t really conceding much.

“With the crowd behind us, we always felt like we were going to get one, and it felt like we did with Palma finishing it off.

“That’s football, isn’t it? Sometimes it goes your way and sometimes it doesn’t but we want those ones to start falling our way because it feels like there have been a couple now that have gone against us and we need to find a way to get the win.

“The margins are so slim, one slip and this level of players will punish you. I mean, that’s Pedro with the header at the back post, for crying out loud, from one little thing.

“We need to be extra cautious and that’s part of my role in the Champions League, to be really defensive-minded. There was one moment where I kind of get caught out and all of a sudden they are scoring at the back post. That’s what is frustrating for myself personally and I think for the team as well.

“I would love to say we are going to learn from this and we will but at this stage you just don’t even want to make that mistake, we feel we are past that.

“It’s frustrating but we have to move on and bounce back.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers admitted their last-gasp 2-1 defeat by Lazio was a “devastating” blow after he felt they deserved to be in front.

Luis Palma thought he had given the Scottish champions an 81st-minute lead but it was ruled offside by a lengthy VAR check when the officials decided Daizen Maeda had helped on Alistair Johnston’s cross.

There was a bigger blow to follow five minutes into stoppage-time when Pedro robbed Cameron Carter-Vickers before spraying the ball out wide and running into the box to head home the resulting cross.

Kyogo Furuhashi’s early opener had been cancelled out by Matias Vecino following a 29th-minute corner.

Rodgers said: “I’m bitterly disappointed. I felt we totally deserved to take something from the game.

“We had a great start and scored a great goal. I’m disappointed with the goal we conceded, I felt we could do better with the corner.

“We were getting through them and it looked like a matter of time before we could score. We got a goal but unfortunately Daizen just got a touch on it and made it offside.

“I felt at that point we deserved to be in front, we had got into some good areas.

“To concede late on was harsh but there’s a learning there. You have to secure the ball late on. The learning is just managing the game at that late stage.

“We knocked on the door second half, if you can’t make the breakthrough just make sure in that late stage of the game that you are secure behind the ball.”

Carter-Vickers had come off the bench to make his comeback following seven weeks out with a hamstring injury.

Rodgers said: “There’s no blame on Cam, it’s one where they steal the ball from him but if we were in a better position, we deal with the cross.

“That’s the learning for the team – you can’t be coming out from the space unless you have good control of the ball.

“It was a devastating way to lose because we deserved something, but like every game there are learnings and when the Atletico game comes hopefully we can learn the lessons.”

Despite the finest of margins between potential victory and a ninth defeat in 11 Champions League group games at home, the facts remain that Celtic are on zero points from two games in Group E.

Rodgers said: “We were under no illusions at the beginning of the competition where we sat. I said at the beginning our idea was to qualify for European football, and that’s still the ambition and mentality.

“We have shown over the two games against good sides that we can compete. If we can just tidy up one or two moments and maybe get a bit of luck, we will still fight in every single game to get that qualification.”

Celtic suffered more Champions League pain at Parkhead as Lazio scored a stoppage-time winner soon after the home side were denied a goal following a lengthy VAR check.

With the score at 1-1, substitute Luis Palma fired home in the 81st minute after Daizen Maeda had attempted an overhead kick from Alistair Johnston’s cross, and the VAR officials decided he was offside.

There was a bigger blow to come when former Barcelona and Chelsea forward Pedro headed home from fellow substitute Matteo Guendouzi’s cross five minutes into stoppage-time to secure the Italian club a 2-1 win in Group E.

Celtic had taken an early lead through Kyogo Furuhashi but Matias Vecino levelled following a 29th-minute corner.

Brendan Rodgers’ side looked the likelier team to find a winner but their 10-year wait for a home victory in the Champions League group stage continues and the ninth defeat in that 11-game run would be the most difficult one to take after a largely encouraging performance.

The tie was a resumption of hostilities from four seasons ago when Celtic triumphed home and away against Lazio in the Europa League, their victory in Rome sealed by Olivier Ntcham, who appeared on a massive pre-match banner among the home fans in the standing section.

Celtic settled quickly and Furuhashi netted his first goal in eight Champions League appearances 12 minutes in.

The Japanese striker’s finish went through the dive of goalkeeper Ivan Provedel after he was played through by a first-time pass from Matt O’Riley after positive play from Maeda.

The atmosphere went up a notch but Celtic did not build on their advantage. Despite having plenty of possession in the aftermath of the goal, most of it was inside their own half and the occasional slack pass put them in danger.

They had a chance on the break when Yang Hyun-jun played Maeda in behind but the Japanese attacker mis-kicked his ambitious effort.

Lazio’s territorial advantage paid off when they won three headers in a row from Luis Alberto’s corner. Joe Hart appeared to have saved the third one from Vecino but the Lithuanian referee ruled the ball had spun behind the line before being clawed away.

Celtic got back on the front foot and O’Riley forced a good save from a first-time strike before getting back to make an important interception to foil a counter-attack.

The start of the second half was finely-balanced. Felipe Anderson failed to make the most of receiving the ball in yards of space inside the Celtic box before the home side came close from a free-kick. Provedel made a good stop from Reo Hatate’s low drive and Johnston fired over from the rebound.

Cameron Carter-Vickers made his comeback from a hamstring injury after a seven-week lay-off when he replaced Nat Phillips while Palma came on for Yang, who had enjoyed some good moments but generally failed to make the most of his possession.

Hart got down well to save Daichi Kamada’s 20-yard drive before Paulo Bernardo snatched at a half-chance at the other end moments after coming on.

Celtic continued to make the running. Palma was briefly bearing down on goal before Alessio Romagnoli slid in to win the ball, Liam Scales attempted an overhead kick which flew over and Furuhashi was denied from close range.

Palma thought he had scored what would have been one of the best-worked goals in the Champions League this week after a lengthy passing move that went from back to front and side to side.

The Honduran winger was booked for taking his shirt off in celebration before the VAR team delivered worse news, and a crushing blow would soon follow to leave Celtic bottom of their group without a point.