Adam Idah came off the bench to hit a double as Celtic came from behind to win another close contest with Motherwell in stoppage time.
Celtic were in serious danger of losing more ground in the cinch Premiership title race after Blair Spittal scored a wonderful goal to give Motherwell a deserved half-time lead at Fir Park.
But Idah headed Celtic level within five minutes of the restart and struck in the third minute of added time as the champions turned the tide in the latter stages of the game.
Fellow substitute Luis Palma made it 3-1 as Celtic cut the gap on leaders Rangers back to two points.
Rangers had piled the pressure on with a 5-0 victory over in-form Hearts on Saturday after Celtic lost top spot following two draws in their previous three league matches.
They knew they would likely face a tough encounter against a Motherwell who have drawn twice at Parkhead in the past year and ran Brendan Rodgers’ side close at Fir Park earlier this season, when Matt O’Riley netted a winner in the seventh minute of time added on.
Spittal was back from injury as Harry Paton missed out, while Celtic had Alistair Johnston and Tomoki Iwata making comebacks, the latter’s selection allowing Callum McGregor to play further forward.
Greg Taylor saw an early shot held by Motherwell captain Liam Kelly, but it was the visiting defence which looked vulnerable in the opening stages.
Lennon Miller got both Theo Bair and Jack Vale in behind with a quick pass on separate occasions. Bair finished brilliantly but was flagged offside and Vale could not get a shot away, turning inside and outside Mark Nawrocki before the defender recovered.
Vale soon forced a diving save from Joe Hart after slack play from Celtic and Motherwell cut open their visitors with an excellent one-touch move which ended with Georgie Gent slicing wide.
Celtic only carved out one real first-half chance, when McGregor’s through-ball found Kyogo Furuhashi, but Kelly came out to block with his feet.
Motherwell remained a threat though and their opener was a thing of beauty. Miller swivelled his way past McGregor with a tremendous piece of skill and set up Spittal to curl the ball out of Hart’s reach from 22 yards.
Idah came on for Furuhashi, who appeared to hurt his troublesome shoulder late in the first half. The Irishman made an instant impact, getting a run on Dan Casey to meet Taylor’s cross and power a header home from 12 yards.
The goal did not initially shift the momentum, though. Hart pulled off a brilliant stop from Miller’s header and Vale threatened twice, the second time when tackling the Celtic goalkeeper, who was relieved to see the ball go wide.
But the champions began to exert more pressure. Cameron Carter-Vickers came off the bench to add an assurance to the Celtic defence and fellow substitute Yang Hyun-jun was causing far more problems for the home team than the man he replaced, Nicolas Kuhn.
Liam Scales had a header saved, Daizen Maeda failed to get any of three chances on target and O’Riley saw a shot charged down by the Motherwell wall after Calum Butcher had hauled Idah to the ground after being turned on the edge of the box.
Willie Collum booked the Motherwell man and stuck to his decision despite being called to the monitor for a potential red-card review.
The pressure grow and Idah got ahead of his marker to convert Johnston’s low cross before Palma tapped home Yang’s ball across the face of goal.
Southgate envisages central role for 'brilliant' Foden at Euro 2024
Gareth Southgate believes Phil Foden's starting position is less important than the spaces he is allowed to attack, pledging to find a way of letting him operate centrally at Euro 2024.
Foden was included in England's 33-man preliminary squad on Tuesday, and he is expected to be among the first names on the teamsheet after enjoying a fine campaign.
Foden was named Premier League Player of the Season as he helped Manchester City win an unprecedented fourth straight title, scoring 19 goals and adding seven assists.
Only three players in the league bettered Foden's goal tally, while he also ranked seventh in the division for chances created (73) and fourth for possession won in the final third (35 times).
Foden scored two excellent goals as City clinched the title with a 3-1 final-day win over West Ham, drifting infield from the right to find space between the lines and in the penalty area.
While the presence of Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham and Arsenal's Bukayo Saka has led many to conclude Foden will be stationed on the left in Germany, Southgate is aware of the need to grant him positional freedom.
"Phil has played off the right, off the left, the key is where he ends up, not his starting position," Southgate said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"He plays on the left with City, sometimes he stays wide, but he's allowed to drift, and it has always been the same with us. He's allowed to drift.
"Then there's where a player has to defend. Jude has played as a 10 all season, and sometimes he has defended on the left for Real Madrid.
"It's about where these players arrive and where you allow them to drift, that's the key. I think if you spoke to all of our players, we never pin them to a touchline, that's not how we work so there is that freedom."
Foden produced a series of talismanic displays for City in the run-in, scoring match-winning hat-tricks against Brentford and Aston Villa and masterminding a vital comeback against Manchester United with two goals in March.
The 23-year-old stepped up while players like Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland were sidelined through injury, and Southgate has been impressed by his ability to shoulder that responsibility.
"It's obvious the brilliant season Phil has had, how he stepped up in big games not only when big players have been out but when he's been playing alongside them as well," Southgate added.
"You want him in central areas as you do one or two others, so we have to find the best way of making that happen."
Shaw a 'long shot' for Euro 2024, says Southgate
Despite including him in his preliminary squad, Gareth Southgate says it is a "long shot" that Luke Shaw will be fit for Euro 2024.
Shaw has been sidelined since February with a muscle injury but is the only recognised left-back in Southgate’s 33-man squad as Ben Chilwell also misses out due to injury.
Joe Gomez is an option for the position after filling in for Liverpool at times this season, while Kieran Trippier has also played at left-back for England in the past.
However, Shaw has been the first-choice left-back for the last two major tournaments, and Southgate admits that he will give him every chance to be fit.
"[Luke Shaw's] up against it," said Southgate. "He's missed a lot of football.
"The fact that he has been our first choice in that position, we've probably given him a lot longer than we would have done.
"I’ve talked with him and the medical team, we’ve been liaising with Manchester United, I'm not sure what's realistic at this time. I have to say, he's a long shot."
Southgate may have other injury problems on his hands. Harry Kane missed the end of Bayern Munich’s season due to a back injury, while Harry Maguire has not played since April.
"The job here is to adapt to the hand of cards you're dealt with," Southgate added.
"The injuries are a very complex thing. Sometimes players have had to play more than they might have done. Some players have come back earlier than they might have done.
"There's definitely been a lot of matches in the calendar. But it's too easy to say it's just the [fault of a] winter World Cup. It's lots of different reasons."
Southgate will cut his squad down to 26 players after England face Iceland in their final pre-tournament friendly at Wembley Stadium on June 7.
Southgate: Henderson will be a miss to the England squad
Gareth Southgate says Jordan Henderson will "be a miss" after omitting the midfielder from his preliminary 33-man England squad for Euro 2024.
Henderson has 81 senior caps for England but saw his place fiercely debated after joining Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq last year from Liverpool.
The 33-year-old was booed by some England fans during a friendly win over Australia last October, having suggested his presence in Saudi Arabia could be a "positive" thing for LGBTQ+ rights in the country in a widely criticised interview with The Athletic.
In January, he secured a move to Ajax but has only made nine Eredivisie appearances as the former Dutch champions finished fifth.
Asked about Henderson’s absence, Southgate said: "[Jordan Henderson] will be a miss. He's an exceptional individual and a fantastic human being. He's been in that leadership role for a long time.
"We've got young players with a lot of caps. There's no reason why young players can't lead.
"The 33 isn’t quite a fair definition because we’re taking a longer squad with some younger players to look at. Hendo has given himself every chance.
"From the last camp, he missed five weeks through injury, and he hasn’t been able to get to that tempo since then. It’s a big call to make, the three players from last time, he, Ben [White] and Marcus [Rashford] all had excellent professionalism."
Marcus Rashford is another one of the names overlooked after a poor season for Manchester United.
He scored just seven goals in 33 Premier League games this campaign after netting 30 in all competitions for the Red Devils in 2022-23.
"These are of course difficult calls," Southgate added when asked about Rashford.
"You are talking about players that are very important players. With Marcus, in that area of the pitch, I feel that other players have had better seasons, it’s as simple as that."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
