With their Old Firm rivals in pursuit, Brendan Rodgers’ team faced immense pressure, but they delivered with goals from Paulo Bernardo and Kyogo Furuhashi on either side of halftime to secure the win at Parkhead.
Leon Balogun received a direct red card for pulling down Daizen Maeda, who was advancing toward the goal, revealing Rangers’ mounting frustration.
Despite Captain James Tavernier’s impressive free-kick narrowing the goal margin for the away team, it proved insufficient and came too late. Rodgers maintains an undefeated record against Celtic’s main rivals on home turf. Meanwhile, Rangers, with two games yet to be played, once again find themselves falling behind in the title race.
The Celtic supporters rose from their seats in the early stages when Kyogo Furuhashi received a pass from the left. However, Jack Butland deflected his shot wide for a corner, subsequently cleared by Rangers. The momentum then shifted to Rangers, with Ross McCausland delivering a low cross that Joe Hart saved, and subsequent attempts from Cyriel Dessers and Todd Cantwell were thwarted.
The focus shifted back to Celtic when Luis Palma delivered an excellent cross for Paulo Bernardo, who narrowly headed it wide of Butland’s far post. Kyogo’s potential setback was alleviated by the offside flag, as he couldn’t connect with Daizen Maeda’s cross during the home team’s push for an opening goal. Bernardo unleashed a powerful strike from 20 yards, causing the side net to ripple. In the following minutes, he seized another opportunity, leading to a jubilant eruption at Celtic Park.
Following Greg Taylor’s deflected shot that went over the bar, a corner was delivered. The clearance from the corner reached the Portuguese midfielder, who skillfully struck the ball, leaving Butland with no opportunity to intervene.
Dessers later had an excellent opportunity to level the score by dispossessing Welsh. However, the Rangers forward hesitated, giving Alistair Johnston enough time to clear the danger.
The Celtic defender, who hurt his shoulder while trying to clear the ball, was promptly substituted with Maik Nawrocki.
Rangers had additional opportunities via McCausland and Todd Cantwell. They believed they had earned a penalty when Johnston seemed to handle the ball in the box. However, referee Nick Walsh was not summoned to the monitor, as Abdallah Sima was deemed offside in the build-up.
Celtic increased their lead shortly after the start of the second half, and it was a display of finesse. O’Riley located the striker at the edge of the box, and he skillfully placed a curling shot into the top corner.
Dessers missed another opportunity for Rangers, while Celtic’s Johnston and Bernardo were fortunate to escape second bookings for untimely challenges.
Rangers’ day took a turn for the worse when Leon Balogun received a straight red card for bringing down Maeda, who was poised to score.
Brendan Rodgers’ team maintained their offensive pressure. Butland thwarted David Turnbull shortly after his entry into the game, also preventing Kyogo and Palma from scoring for Rangers.
Celtic’s upcoming Scottish Premiership game is against St Mirren on Tuesday, broadcast live on Sky Sports with a kick-off time of 5 pm.
Rangers’ following Scottish Premiership match will be at home against Kilmarnock on Tuesday, with a kick-off time of 3 pm.