Europa League: Celtic 3-3 Inter Milan

  • Published
Celtic's John Guidetti hammers in the equaliserImage source, SNS
Image caption,

Celtic's John Guidetti hammers in the equaliser

  • Guidetti's late effort secures first-leg draw

  • Deila's team fall 2-0 behind inside 15 minutes

  • Celtic retaliate through Armstrong's strike & own goal

  • Second leg on Thursday 26 February at San Siro

John Guidetti's stunning added-time goal earned Celtic a draw against Inter Milan and gives them belief they can progress in their Europa League tie.

They conceded cheap early goals to Xherdan Shaqiri and Rodrigo Palacio but levelled through Stuart Armstrong's finish and Hugo Campagnaro's own goal.

Palacio pounced on Craig Gordon's error to hand Inter a half-time lead.

The second half did not look like yielding any further goals until the Swede's first strike since November.

It is a goal which keeps the tie in the balance and they play the second leg at the San Siro on 26 February.

Celtic had rightfully approached the first leg in a confident state of mind, with eight successive wins since the turn of the year and the sense that the team are really beginning to gel under manager Ronny Deila.

But that run of victories was secured domestically, against teams with only a fraction of the ability of their Italian opponents.

It looked in the early stages as though the mid-table Serie A club would prove to be too great a step up in class for the Scottish champions to handle.

Image source, SNS
Image caption,

Rodrigo Palacio capitalised on Celtic goalkeeper Craig Gordon's fumble to put Inter 3-2 in front

Defensive slackness, which would often go unpunished in the league, by Jason Denayer gifted Inter possession and when Zdravko Kuzmanovic's clipped ball over the top of the defence was met on the volley by Shaqiri, Gordon parried the effort, unaware the ball was heading wide.

The second chance was lapped up by the Swiss, who tucked the rebound into the net from a narrow angle.

Shaqiri caused Gordon problems again shortly afterwards - a dipping volley forcing the keeper to punch to safety, but the respite was brief.

The Inter forward helped the ball back into the box when the subsequent corner was cleared, Emilio Izaguirre's hacked clearance cannoned off Virgil van Dijk into the path of the grateful Palacio, who slid the ball through Gordon's legs.

Celtic were looking distressed and with Inter's confidence increasing, the tie appeared all but over inside the opening 15 minutes.

But that was to reckon without Celtic's own attacking abilities, which came to the fore twice within the space of a minute.

Stefan Johansen squeezed a return pass through to the marauding Adam Matthews, whose cutback was perfect for Armstrong to side-foot in.

Moments later he was celebrating an equaliser as he pressurised Campagnaro into knocking Johansen's lobbed pass past his own goalkeeper, with Celtic Park in raptures.

Unbelievably, though, there was a further twist before the break. Gary Medel's hopeful through-ball looked like being safely gathered by Gordon, but he unfathomably allowed it to squirm from his grasp, allowing Palacio to tap into the unguarded net.

The irony that Celtic would, in all likelihood, be out of Europe were it not for some of Gordon's heroics in previous games was not lost on the home crowd, who chanted the keeper's name before the teams departed at the interval.

Unsurprisingly, the second half could not match the first for drama, yet both teams created opportunities.

Gordon earned some redemption by pushing another Shaqiri effort away, but Celtic were the more dangerous team and only good goalkeeping by Juan Pablo Carrizo denied Gary Mackay-Steven and Leigh Griffiths from close range.

Guidetti was introduced as a late substitute and despite seeing little of the ball, his late volley into the top corner, after Liam Henderson's chipped pass, had the home fans in ebullient mood by the final whistle.

Image source, SNS
Image caption,

It did not take Inter Milan long to take a 2-0 lead at Celtic Park

Image source, SNS
Image caption,

Celtic manager Ronny Deila said the atmosphere was like nothing else he had ever experienced

Image source, SNS
Image caption,

Stuart Armstrong netted his second Celtic goal since joining on transfer deadline night

Sorry, we can't display this part of the article any more.