Match Pictures | Matches: 2026 – 2027
Trivia
- KO: 12pm, Sunday. Premier Sports TV
- League Cup quarter-final
- Martin O’Neill said Police Scotland met with Celtic Squad to discuss behaviour ahead of this game.
- First meeting between the two sides this season.
- Only 300 tickets allocation to Celtic fans for away end, but at end no away fans today, follows trouble at the Scottish Cup encounter earlier in the year with no real resolution so far.
- Hassan on the bench surprising everyone, Johnstone remains in goals. Johnstone has a nightmare math and unable to cope it seemed.
- Tounekti started and pulled off halftime. Poor and ineffective match, for many it was a big test for his career at Celtic and he failed.
- Lotomba debut, subbed on but too late to do anything of note.
- Martin O’Neill and his fellow SP managers met with referee head Willie Collum and Martin Atkinson to ‘clear up’ some things about VAR.
- Four arrests made at Ibrox, including one person for assaulting a police officer and another for sectarian abuse
- Celtic have NOT won at Ibrox in the 90mins in last 7 visits now, Celtic did lose 3-0 last year to a Sevco side (when Celtic managed by Nancy).
Summary
JBCity of TheCelticWiki: Surprising as it may now seem, Celtic entered this match as favourites but only just after a recent pick-up by TheRangers of late. However, from early on there were problems. Some complained about Tounetki starting but O’Neill later said it was due to issue of concern on Hassan who had not slept well the night before.
From the off, Johnstone in goals was a disaster and almost gifted TheRangers a goal with his poor distribution throughout. Next was the powder-puff midfield, a long-time complaint and really McGregor was showing his age. There was little of good note in the match, with Hogh given little service but doing little to prove his price-tag. If anything, the scoreline flatterred Celtic in a very one way match, and yet the opposition was nothing special themselves which made things so much worse.
When Celtic went 2 down, there was little belief of any comeback as occurred last season in a 2-2 draw. Celtic missed Yang, but also the now departed Engels.
Worse was that, many of the concerns over MoN were now being made public and discussed which was the last thing the club needed as this point, but it had to be said. The problems had cumulated to this match and really there was no turning back now, but problems have to be rectified.
“I’m not so sure it’s always to do with systems. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. Hopefully, it’s a wake-up call.”
Martin O’Neill
Ex-Celt Pat Bonner: “Celtic haven’t performed at all. There’s big question marks over some of the players.”
Martin O’Neill tells BBC Scotland: “We were well beaten. The 3-0 scoreline doesn’t hide it, it was a tough afternoon for us. “We were well in the game early on, even at half time, but they were stronger than us on the day and they deserved to win. “I think throughout the first half we, in really good positions, gave the ball away, we had three or four brilliant opportunities on the counter-attack and wasted them. “Everything Rangers did I expected them to do. Whatever way Rangers set up, they’re not going to give me a call and say what they’re going to do so we had to counter that. “Next Sunday will be a different ball game when we’ve got the home crowd with us and if they make the same sort of noise as Rangers made today that will be very helpful. We can learn from this and that’s the most important thing. We need to. “If you’ve been beaten in the game, you always think about selection. I will think about my own part in proceedings and then we’ll see. I wanted people to experience this atmosphere and they certainly did. “This is a setback and hopefully a learning curve for us.”
Pat Bonner Former Celtic goalkeeper on BBC Sportsound I was shocked at how well Rangers played but I was utterly shocked by how bad Celtic were. It’s bottle. When you come up against a good Rangers team, in this venue and don’t have your fans, you’ve got to go out there and show you’re taking responsibility. The players up front, the players Celtic bought, those guys were awful today.
Subtrack: The most alarming thing for me today was that how little appeared to have been learned from the LASK debacle. People can rightly say that MON has forgotten more about football than I’ll ever know, but from my understanding of the game as a fan, to attempt to play 4-3-3 with a luxury no. 10 in Nygren, a veteran holding mid who understandably struggles with an aggressive press when isolated, just seems like madness. And then do it again in the next big game. It defies logic to me. But what do I know? And poor old Tounekti. He’s now entered the Luke McCowan territory of being the guy who just isn’t anywhere near good enough to play for Celtic, but it’s not his fault that he’s there in the first place. We’ve paid c.£5m for a downgrade on Mikey Johnston. And yet I’m being asked to believe that our recruitment process is actually very good. Sorry, but my head is just spinning with it all. We need the mother of all resets, that should have been at least attempted during the close season. Anyway, I must pop on to another Celtic blog to find out how all this is all Brendan Rodgers’ fault.
WBhoy of KDS:
I took that as a wake-up call for Desmond and the other carrot who blocked the Gineitis transfer. They did it in January and they did it again in the summer (and lets be honest, for years and years before). They decided that their judgement of a good financial deal overrides the judgement of the coaching staff on the team’s needs. The footballing people wanted Gineitis – this is clear whatever people think of the suitability of the player – but instead got Sørensen. Maybe it was supposed to be Sørensen and Gineitis but in any case we only got Sørensen.
Now Sørensen is not a replacement for Engels our most important midfielder. Neither is Baur. We only won the league because Engels came back for the run in and transformed the team. He was a player that not everyone rated but you could see his effectiveness from how the team played with and without him. It was blindingly obvious that we need an “Engels-like” player in midfield. Especially if we continue with the aged McGregor (or Ox) and Nygren. Our money men decided that wasn’t needed.
Things are not looking good for Sørensen already. He played a couple of unimpressive games and then was relegated to the bench on Sunday and not called upon despite that midfield atrocity. You already have to wonder if MON has decided he is another Adamu or Mvuka.
Now I don’t trust the transfer judgement of MON or Maloney but I sure as hell trust it more than that of Desmond, Nicholson and McKay. We are a profoundly dysfunctional club. We have a dinosaur manager who has a completely different approach to our out-of-his-depth coach. We lack the basic footballing infrastructure (medical, sports science, tactical) that top teams have. We have an interfering “owner” who is now in the place where he puts loyalty above competence.
The wake-up call is to Desmond. He’s had many, many wake-up calls though. He doesn’t heed them. MON is about to find out that his mate is actually a carrot who has shafted him just like he shafted our previous manager.
jb1958 of KDS: Over run by a bang average team.
They tackled,we didn’t
The pushed forward at pace,we didn’t
we wanted 15-20 passes with our horseshoe tactics,they used 5 or 6.
Their bang average defenders coped with our so called attacking stars easily,our useless defenders,Donovan apart,coped with nothing.
Our head coach & wee sidekick refused to see what was happening in front of them & the changes therefore were too little,too late.
Probably the most embarrassing result we’ve suffered for a long time,and I’m including LASK in that.
The board shoulder a lot of the blame,quite rightly but the LASK game,and todays debacle show that MON & wee Shaun are not up to the task.
Teams
Celtic
Manager: Martin O’Neill
Formation: 4 – 3 – 3
Starting lineup
26, S. Johnstone
63, K. Tierney, subbed for J. Lotomba at 80 mins
05, L. Scales
20, C. Carter-Vickers
51, C. Donovan, Yellow Card at 27 mins
22, M. Baur
42, C. McGregor (c), Captain
08, B. Nygren, Yellow Card at 19 mins, subbed for J. Forrest at 64 mins
17, S. Tounekti, subbed for Haissem Hassan at 46 mins
09, K. Høgh, subbed for A. Oxlade-Chamberlain at 64 mins
11, C. Durán, subbed for S. Mheuka at 77 mins
Subs:
49, J. Forrest
23, Haissem Hassan,79′, Yellow Card at 79 mins
03, J. Lotomba
29, S. Mheuka
47, D. Murray
21, A. Oxlade-Chamberlain
01, V. Sinisalo
18, O. Sørensen
06, A. Trusty
Goals:
Assists:
TheRangers
Manager: Derek McInnes
Formation: 4 – 4 – 1 – 1
Starting lineup
01, I. Pandur
29, J. Penrice,78′, Yellow Card at 78 mins
24, O. Makhanya,48′, Yellow Card at 48 mins
37, E. Fernandez
21, D. Sterling
23, D. Gassama, subbed for F. Curtis at 85 mins
43, N. Raskin
06, D. Neil (c), Captain, subbed for V. Dragojević at 86 mins
10, Kim Min-Su, subbed for B. Bouanani at 74 mins
20, R. Naderi, subbed for B. Godfrey at 74 mins
19, K. Kelsy, subbed for B. Miovski at 87 mins
Subs:
26, B. Bouanani
42, T. Chukwuani
52, F. Curtis
14, C. Devlin
22, V. Dragojević
04, B. Godfrey
31, L. Kelly
02, R. McCrorie
28, B. Miovski
Goals:
D. Neil (23′, 75′)
K. Kelsy (59′)
Assists:
K. Kelsy (23′)
D. Neil (59′)
Match Officials
Referee: Nick Walsh
Video Assistant Referee: Andrew Dallas
Assistant Referee 1: Frank Connor
Assistant Referee 2: Daniel McFarlane
Assistant VAR Official: Steven McLean
Venue:Ibrox Stadium
Attendance:51,212
Articles
- Match Report (see below)
Pictures
Stats
Basic Stats
Overall possession
Rangers 53%
Celtic 47%
Shots
Rangers 15
Celtic 7
Shots on target
Rangers 8
Celtic 1
Goalkeeper saves
Rangers 1
Celtic 5
Fouls committed
Rangers 12
Celtic 15
Corners
Rangers 5
Celtic 3
In-depth match stats
Attack
Shots
Rangers 15
Celtic 7
Shots on target
Rangers 8
Celtic 1
Shots off target
Rangers 5
Celtic 3
Attempts out of box
Rangers 7
Celtic 4
Total offsides
Rangers 3
Celtic 1
Defence
Fouls committed
Rangers 12
Celtic 15
Total yellow cards
Rangers 2
Celtic 3
Articles
Derby disappointment in League Cup quarter-final
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/september/13/derby-disappointment-in-league-cup-quarter-final/
First Team
By Matthew Campbell
Share
13 Sep 2026, 1:54 pm
Scottish League Cup
Sunday, September 13, 2026
Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow
RANGERS…3
(Neil 22 & 75, Kelsy 59)
CELTIC…0
Celtic were knocked out of the League Cup at Ibrox this afternoon, with Rangers winning the quarter-final tie 3-0.
The home side had a big opportunity just four minutes in to the game when a misplaced clearance from Sam Johnstone went straight to Rangers’ Kevin Kelsy in the box, but his shot went wide of the post.
Celtic’s first glimpse at goal came five minutes later when Colby Donovan produced an excellent pass to Kasper Høgh, who controlled the ball but then stumbled before he could get a shot away. Camilo Durán reacted quickly and was able to shoot. However the angle was difficult for him and his shot went wide.
Minsu was the next Rangers player to find himself with a chance but his powerful effort, which was heading for the back of the net, was cleared on the line by Liam Scales, who had read the situation well and was perfectly positioned to prevent the goal.
The home side went ahead in the 22nd minute, with Kevin Kelsy cutting the ball back to Dan Neil on the edge of the box. Neil’s effort beat Johnstone down to his right, giving the Ibrox side a 1-0 lead.
Celtic worked hard to try and break Rangers down and create an opportunity, but the momentum was with the home side for the remainder of the half, and both Benjamin Nygren and Colby Donovan were left walking a tightrope, with both men picking up yellow cards in the first 45 minutes.
53%
Possession
47%
15
Shots
7
8
Shots On Target
1
4
Corners
3
12
Fouls
15
2
0
Cards
3
0
Martin O’Neill made one change at half-time, replacing Sebastian Tounekti with Haissem Hassan as Celtic looked to cause the home side more problems going forward.
Sam Johnstone produced a good save early in the second half, pushing Minsu’s well-struck effort from distance wide of the target to keep the deficit to just one goal. He made another good stop moments later to deny Ryan Naderi, who had a free header at the back post from a Rangers corner.
The home side doubled their lead in the 59th minute with Kevin Kelsy finishing in to the bottom corner with an effort from inside the box to make it 2-0 following an assist from Dan Neil.
It looked like Rangers had made it 3-0 just a few minutes later with a headed finish that beat Sam Johnstone, but the celebrations were cut short by the linesman’s flag and the scoreline remained the same.
Martin O’Neill made two changes with 25 minutes left to play, bringing James Forrest and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on for Kasper Høgh and Benjamin Nygren, with Camilo Durán being deployed through the middle.
Hassan went close to pulling a goal back for Celtic in the 72nd minute after James Forrest found him with a great switch of play, but the Egyptian’s effort from the edge of the box rose just over the bar.
Dan Neil made it 3-0 to the home side with 15 minutes left to play, curling an effort in to the top corner from the edge of the box after finding himself with time and space following a clearance from inside the area.
Following that goal, Shumaira Mheuka was brought on for Camilo Durán. There was then another switch before full time, with Jordan Lotomba coming on for his Celtic debut, replacing Kieran Tierney.
Rangers: Pandur, Sterling, Fernandez, Makhanya, Penrice, Kim Min-Su (Bouanani 74′), Neil (Dragojevic 86′), Raskin, Gassama (Curtis 85′), Naderi (Godfrey 74′), Kelsy (Miovski 87′)
Subs: McCrorie, Godfrey, Devlin, Dragojevic, Bouanani, Miovski, Kelly, Chukwuani, Curtis
Celtic: Johnstone, Donovan, Carter-Vickers, Scales, Tierney (Lotomba 80′), Nygren (Forrest 64′), McGregor, Baur, Durán (Mheuka 77′), Høgh (Oxlade-Chamberlain 64′), Tounekti (Haissem Hassan 45′)
Subs: Sinisalo, Lotomba, Trusty, Sørensen, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Haissem Hassan, Mheuka, Murray, Forrest
Manager’s post-match reaction after Ibrox defeat
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2026/september/13/manager-s-post-match-reach-after-ibrox-defeat/
First Team
By Paul Cuddihy, Celtic View Editor
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13 Sep 2026, 2:35 pm
It was a disappointing derby day for Celtic as they suffered a 3-0 defeat at Ibrox in the quarter-final of the League Cup.
It was the team’s first domestic defeat of the campaign and Celtic manager, Martin O’Neill, said that it was a tough afternoon for his team, admitting that the Hoops were ‘well beaten in the end.’
“Domestically, it’s been good for us so far,” he said, “but I just thought we were second best and they looked physically stronger than us on the day. We need to do something about it. So, it’s a combination of a number of things.
“The first thing I have to do is look at my own performance for a start before I start talking about the team.
“The disappointment is tangible and everybody has to look at themselves – myself, and then I obviously have to look at the team, how we played, how we didn’t play in many aspects. And hopefully it’s a wake-up call to us.”
BBC
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/live/cvj64yrgx778t#Report
At a glance
Neil double and Kelsy strike earns Rangers emphatic win
Ibrox side dominate throughout in front of 50,000 home fans
Celtic overrun in deserved defeat to end treble hopes
ByMartin Dowden
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter at Ibrox
Rangers progressed to the Premier Sports Cup semi-finals as they delivered an emphatic and dominant win over Celtic at Ibrox.
Captain Dan Neil’s superb double, sandwiched by Kevin Kelsy’s thumping half-volley, left an insipid Celtic well beaten, chasing answers throughout as the hosts advanced to meet Aberdeen.
Victory delivered a dream Old Firm managerial debut for Derek McInnes who has overseen a sharp upturn in form and results after early season struggles.
With no away supporters, 50,000 home fans lapped up a performance during which Martin O’Neill’s men were found wanting ahead of a league meeting at Celtic Park between the sides next Sunday.
This is the type of occasion Rangers just haven’t got through in recent years. They ripped up that script at Ibrox.
O’Neill opted for Sam Johnstone in goal and he looked more than uncomfortable from the off. It seemed Celtic hadn’t expected how Rangers would set up and they were relentlessly punished.
Ryan Naderi did well to feed Kelsy who in turn laid the ball off to Neil all alone outside the penalty. His finish into the corner showed genuine class.
The pressure rarely stopped. Kelsy scored his first goal for Rangers when he drifted to the back post and fired a superb shot in off the near post.
Emmanuel Fernandez thought he had a third but was ruled offside. However, another arrived when Neil gathered and sent a beautiful curling shot beyond Johnstone into the top corner to send Ibrox wild.
Did O’Neill get team selection wrong in Old Firm defeat?
Published
15 hours ago
Match stats
Rangers analysis: Dream outcome and performance for McInnes
Derek McInnes got his tactics spot on and clearly had his players absolutely on point as to what it would take to dispose of Celtic.
Their intensity was clear. Their gameplan effective. They were dangerous throughout and prepared to take a risk, relying on individuals to win their battles.
Rangers fans drooled as Celtic looked dumbfounded.
It is such a big moment for Rangers and McInnes after early season woes. Any doubters watching this will be having rapid rethinks.
This is exactly the type of occasion Rangers have fallen short in repeatedly. Not here, and now they have engineered a real chance of silverware ahead of travelling to Celtic on league business next weekend.
There were so many big performances, capped by an outstanding display from captain Neil, who arrived as a Rangers player on the biggest stage to seal a very significant victory for the club.
Celtic analysis: Celtic well beaten
For all that Rangers performed well and came up with a tactical plan that paid off, Celtic were second best by some distance. The levels between them were stark.
Early errors handed Rangers huge encouragement but they just never got going.
O’Neill spoke about characters in this side pre-match, but too many appeared to vanish when the going got tough, in stark contrast to what Celtic usually do on domestic occasions like this.
Celtic’s starting selection didn’t work with Camilo Duran nullified on the right and Sebastian Tounekti ineffective down the left.
The absence of Hassan raised eyebrows and more so as time ticked on. When introduced at half-time, there was little impact. Sam Johnstone did not look at all comfortable in goal.
New signings didn’t deliver. Experienced faces equally so. It was startling how poor their performance was.
Celtic have earned league wins without, in the main, excelling.
This was a sharp, sore lesson with a big, big response required this week both in Europe and against Rangers at home next weekend.
What they said
Rangers manager Derek McInnes tells BBC Scotland: “It was the performance and result we were all looking for. The game demanded a big performance and I thought we delivered on that. It’s a good reference point for my players.
“They’re a young squad and they saw how much that result means to the supporters.”
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill tells BBC Scotland: “We were well beaten. The 3-0 scoreline doesn’t hide it, it was a tough afternoon for us.
“We were well in the game early on, even at half time, but they were stronger than us on the day and they deserved to win.
“I think throughout the first half we, in really good positions, gave the ball away, we had three or four brilliant opportunities on the counter-attack and wasted them.”
Did O’Neill get team selection wrong in Old Firm defeat?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c7v48v2729yo
Martin O’Neill in the Ibrox dugoutImage source, SNS
Image caption,
Martin O’Neill’s side were well beaten at Ibrox
ByCharlotte Cohen
BBC Sport Scotland
Published
13 September 2026
When Sebastian Tounekti’s name appeared on the Celtic teamsheet for Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup quarter-final, the collective groan from supporters could have drowned out the 50,000 strong Ibrox crowd.
With Yang Hyun-jun away on international duty, Tounekti made just his second start of the season in Wednesday’s 1-0 win over St Johnstone, with former Hoops goalkeeper Pat Bonner describing his first-half performance in Perth as “awful”.
The Tunisia winger lost possession 23 times against Simo Valakari’s side – only opposition keeper Toby Steward coughed up possession more.
Tounekti toiled again at Ibrox up against Rangers right-back Dujon Sterling, so much so that he was hooked at half-time and replaced by Egypt international Haissem Hassan, who joined Celtic from Real Oviedo this summer in a deal reportedly worth up to £9m.
The substitution made little difference as Celtic slumped to a 3-0 defeat, having been one down at the break.
“That was a question, should Tounekti start or not?” Bonner said.
“O’Neill went with him but I think I think he now realises that maybe he’s not the player that’s going to be dominant in this team.
“Sterling absolutely dominated him, and Sterling was playing almost like a third centre-half.
“Out of all of the wingers we’ve seen, I think Hassan should have started. He’s maybe not 100 per cent match fit but you pay big money for these guys they have to perform.”
‘McInnes delivers togetherness & intensity in Old Firm gobsmacker’
Published
16 hours ago
Rangers overwhelm meek Celtic to clinch semi-final spot
Rangers v Aberdeen & Edinburgh derby in League Cup semis
Published
19 hours ago
‘Freezing’ Hogh, changes in defence & rusty Johnstone
Tounekti’s spot in Celtic’s front three was not the only attacking quandary for O’Neill going into the game.
Camilo Duran had excelled through the middle while Kasper Hogh – another big-money summer signing – was out injured.
But with Hogh fit again, the Dane started at McDiarmid Park and led the line again at Ibrox, with Duran moved out wide.
Both struggled to make an impact and former Rangers man Andy Halliday was scathing in his assessment of Hogh’s performance.
“Kasper Hogh has blown hot and cold for Celtic so far, but he was absolutely freezing today,” Halliday said on Premier Sports.
“On the ball, off the ball – no desire, no willingness to get back and defend for his team.”
After Hogh was brought off on 64 minutes, Duran was deployed through the middle, only to be substituted himself 13 minutes later for Shim Mheuka.
O’Neill also opted to break up the centre-back pairing of Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty that had started seven of Celtic’s nine games this season. Kieran Tierney returned at left-back and Liam Scales shifted inside to partner Carter-Vickers.
On-loan Wolves goalkeeper Sam Johstone, who also started at St Johnstone, was perhaps a surprise inclusion given Viljami Sinisalo has kept four clean sheets in his eight appearances this season.
Despite some sharp saves in Perth, the 33-year-old looked rusty at Ibrox, maybe unsurprising given it was just his second competitive appearance since March.
Rangers striker Kevin Kelsy should have scored when Johnstone’s clearance went straight to him early on and Kim Min-Su had an effort cleared off the line by Scales after the four-time England international palmed a cross into his path.
Johnstone spent the rest of the game being goaded by Rangers supporters every time he was on the ball.
“If you’ve been beaten in a game you always think about selection,” manager O’Neill said post-match.
“I’ll think about my own part in proceedings first of all and then we’ll see. I wanted people to experience this atmosphere and they certainly did that today.”
What the fans said
Gordy: Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney got team selection and formation totally wrong. It was obvious Rangers would overload the midfield and fight for the second ball, physically and mentally we were not up to the task. Colby Donovan, Mika Baur and especially Sebastian Tounekti were not up to the standard needed to play for us.
Moe: Team selection was wrong, Viljami Sinisalo should have played he had the experience already.
Phillip: Worst performance in five years, a mess from the get go starting with leaving Hassan out. Johnstone a disaster in goal, Sinisalo needs to go back in. A good look in the mirror needed and midfield signings in January.
Willie: Shocking team selection from the start.
Biggar: Martin O’Neill got two big team selection decisions wrong. Tounekti shouldn’t be anywhere near the Celtic first team. Hassan should’ve started on the right, with Duran on the left. Sinisalo should’ve been back in goal, very harsh on him to lose his starting place.
Sublime Rangers lay down early Old Firm marker with League Cup hammering of Celtic
https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/rangers-celtic-old-firm-result-dan-neil-b3049378.html
Rangers 3-0 Celtic: Gers won the first Old Firm clash of the season in style as skipper Dan Neil scored twice and Kevin Kelsy also netted
Ronnie Esplin
Sunday 13 September 2026 14:33 BST
Skipper Dan Neil grabbed a glorious double as Derek McInnes claimed his first Old Firm victory as Rangers boss with an emphatic 3-0 Scottish League Cup win over Celtic.
With no away fans inside Ibrox at the order of the authorities amid a ticket allocation spat between the two Glasgow giants, the whole stadium exploded in blue in the 22nd minute when midfielder Neil, signed from Sunderland in the summer, guided in his first Gers goal from the edge of the box.
New striker Kevin Kelsy fired in a second in the 59th minute, his first in Light Blue, with Neil adding a third with another fine finish in the 75th minute as the hosts marched into the semi-finals.
It was a first domestic defeat of the season for Celtic, who rarely threatened the Gers goal.
However, Martin O’Neill’s side will not have long to wait for revenge as the two sides meet in the Scottish Premiership next Sunday. Visiting fans are again banned, although after five wins in a row for Rangers, they will travel with confidence.
Both teams showed changes for the first derby of the season. Rangers attacker Kim Min-su took over from Badredine Bouanani while Cameron Carter-Vickers, Kieran Tierney, Benjamin Nygren and Camilo Duran came back into the visitors’ side, with Sam Johnstone keeping his place in goal after making his debut against St Johnstone in midweek.
Johnstone made an unconvincing start. In the fourth minute a scuffed clearance by the on-loan Wolves goalkeeper sped straight to Kelsy but he missed the target with his snatched shot.
Celtic settled and they had a fine chance in the 12th minute after striker Kasper Hogh slipped as he took a fine pass from Colby Donovan and Gers’ Emmanuel Fernandez poked the ball to Duran. However, his drive was also off target, slipping past Ivor Pandur’s left-hand post.
When Johnstone flapped at a James Penrice cross to palm the ball away only to Kim, his shot was deflected away from goal by Liam Scales for a corner which came to nothing.
The opening goal came from striker Ryan Naderi battling to get the better of Carter-Vickers and playing the ball into Kelsy, who moved it on to Neil at the edge of the box.
Sebastian Tounekti was replaced by right-winger Haissem Hassan for the start of the second half as O’Neill swapped Duran to the left.
Johnstone made up for his first half errors with a terrific save from Kim’s powerful drive, before an easier save from Naderi’s header following a Penrice corner.
Both side enjoyed brief spells of pressure before the hosts doubled their lead in the 59th minute. Following a deep cross from Penrice, Kelsy fired in off the post from 14 yards for a goal which survived a VAR check.
The Gers fans were still celebrating when, from another Penrice delivery, Raskin got the last touch on the ball before it sped past Johnstone – but offside was called.
Celtic rocked as their old rivals pressed for a third and in the 74th minute Naderi limped off, to be replaced by defender Ben Godfrey, with winger Bouanani replacing Kim.
Any doubts about the outcome of the contest ended moments later, when Neil picked up a clearance at the edge of the box and curled the ball high past Johnstone, with the Gers supporters serenading their side to the final whistle.