Scottish Premiership St. Mirren 0 Celtic 3 Full time

Reo Hatate's second goal of the season put Celtic two goals in front at half-time

Celtic began life without Matt O'Riley with a comfortable Scottish Premiership win away to St Mirren.

The Denmark international midfielder was left out of Brendan Rodgers' squad for the trip to Paisley as he closes in on a move to Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion.

It did not affect the league champions though, as captain Callum McGregor fired them into the lead inside three minutes.

Reo Hatate lashed in a second to put Celtic in command, before Alistair Johnston made it three in the second half following good work from Nicolas Kuhn.

The result was never in doubt and the margin of victory could have been greater were it not for a string of saves by St Mirren keeper Ellery Balcombe.

Celtic are top of the table after three wins from three, while St Mirren sit eighth on three points.

Hatate steps up as Celtic continue perfect start

The big news before kick-off in Paisley was the confirmation that O'Riley's Celtic departure is imminent, with the midfielder undergoing a medical with Brighton.

Paulo Bernardo took over from the Denmark international and, while the former Benfica man will be expected to replace some of O'Riley's goals, it was the two established midfield stars who led the way for the visitors.

McGregor lashed a low left-footed drive into the bottom corner in just the third minute, using the slick surface to his advantage, and Celtic never looked back.

Hatate added a second with a lovely first-time finish from Daizen Maeda's knockdown and it could have been more in a magnificent first half.

Rodgers' side pressed St Mirren into submission, forcing errors in dangerous areas and popping the ball about with confidence on the slick Paisley surface.

The Celtic dominance continued after the break, and their third goal was fully deserved.

Kuhn - who was sharp once again off the bench - drove into the St Mirren box and teed up Johnston, who fired high beyond Balcombe's despairing dive.

There will be tougher tests to come, but the midfield performance will have been particularly heartening for Rodgers.

Hatate, in particular, shone, picking up dangerous positions with his clever movement and creating five chances in addition to his goal. If he can stay fit, he has the ability to step up in O'Riley's absence.

Next up for Celtic? Rangers at home in the first Old Firm match of the season next Sunday.

Battling Buddies blown away

Stephen Robinson would have been hugely disappointed to see his side concede so early.

They sat deep in numbers, looking to frustrate Celtic and pounce on the break when they did turnover possession.

The issue was whenever they did win the ball back, they were swarmed by a relentless Celtic press and St Mirren's front two of Toyosi Olusanya and Jonah Ayunga were left isolated, as evidenced by just the solitary shot the hosts had in the first half.

Ayunga was replaced by Mikael Mandron at half-time, while Roland Idowu came on for Alex Gogic, and for a period Robinson's side posed more of a threat.

Olusanya looked to be bearing down on goal but was denied by an excellent sliding tackle by Johnston, and Jaden Brown then forced Kasper Schmeichel into his only save of the afternoon.

St Mirren's season will not be defined by their results against Celtic though, and Robinson will be heartened by aspects of his team's defensive display.

There were several last-ditch tackles and blocks that kept the scoring down, and in Balcombe they appear to have a quality shot-stopper. The battling qualities that have characterised Robinson's time in charge kept Celtic to just three.

They face Dundee at Dens Park on Saturday looking for a first win in six in all competitions.

What they said

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson: "Credit to Celtic. It was a horrible day in Paisley and they did the simple things much better than us.

"They started with a very good goal and that gives us an uphill battle straight away. We got what we deserved. We weren't the best version of ourselves, and if you're not, you don't beat Celtic.

"We've had a tough run, a tough set of games and we need to reset ourselves.

"I don't think we made a game of it today. We didn't really have any opportunities. We need to get our injured players fit again; once we do that, we've got a good squad."

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers: "In terms of performance and result, in difficult conditions, the players were good right from the off.

"A player of Matt O'Riley's quality will always be missed, but we never leave the burden to one player. Everyone contributes. Matt has moved on - fantastic for him and there's opportunity now for other players to come in.

"We'll bring players in, hopefully. What I do know is that by next Friday we will have improved the squad."