The 10-man Hoops held on to a valuable Europa League point despite leading 2-0 in Italy
19:53, 22 Jan 2026Updated 20:08, 22 Jan 2026
Jonathan Rowe of Bologna celebrates scoring his sides second goal(Image: )
The famous pasta sauce in these parts might be sensational but a battling point tasted pretty sweet for Celtic, writes Michael Gannon in Bologna.
The Hoops surrendered a two goal lead but getting out of Bologna with an Europa League point was heroic after battling with 10 men for an hour.
Reo Hatate blasted Celts to an early lead – but then got sent off for two mindless yellow cards in the space of three minutes.
Auston Trusty poached a second but Marin O’Neil’s men had to withstand a second half battering.
The Serie A outfit – led by Scotland ace Lewis Ferguson – clawed back the deficit but the Hoops managed to hang on to give them a superb chance of reaching the knockout stages.
It was a wild night – but some result in the end.
Celts got off to a dream start as keeper Lukasz Skorupski had a nightmare on his return after two months out.
The Pole shanked his pass straight to Daizen Maeda, who squared for Hatate to bury after just five minutes.
Reo Hatate of Celtic is shown a red card(Image: )
The goalscorer turned sinner though with two needless bookings to get himself sent off, firstly for tangling with Ferguson and then for slapping Juan Miranda on the back.
The Hoops had to seriously dig in to keep Bologna at bay – but then stunned the hosts with a second just before half-time when Trusty tucked away after Arne Engels flicked on Kieran Tierney’s corner.
It was a complete backs to the wall job after the break. The chances piled up with Benjamin Dominguez hitting the bar and Kasper Schmeichel making several saves before the Dane was breached just before the hour when Thijs Dallinga nodded home from close range.
And they were hit again when Jonathan Rowe whipped past a stationary Schmeichel from the edge of the box.
Bologna looked likely to finish the job but the Hoops toughed it out and no one would put it pasta O’Neill sealing progress next week.
REO RED MIST
Celts needed all hands on deck – but Hatate was man overboard with his ridiculous red card.
The midfielder picked up a silly first yellow for pulling back and then kicking Ferguson.
But his second was a total brain fart as he slapped the back of Juan Miranda out of frustration.
It was a moment of madness at a time when Celtic were already seriously under the cosh.
O’Neill blew a gasket on the sidelines and got booked for complaining to the officials, but his anger would have been more justifiably aimed at Hatate at leaving his pals in the lurch.
The second goal gave Celts something to defend but it was always going to be a heck of a hard shift with 10 men and it was relentless pressure with no out ball on the pitch.
SOLID METTLE
There is a real determination in this Hoops team under O’Neill – that had largely evaporated under Wilfried Nancy.
Celts had to properly suffer at times against the Serie A side and on previous occasions they would have buckled long before it caught up with them here.
But there was a huge desire to put bodies on the line to keep Bologna at bay for long spells.
Auston Trusty can sometimes doze off in Scotland but he was right on it here, along with plenty others, with numerous blocks and challenges.
It was always going to be a big ask to hang on but it was the nature of the goals that will sting the most – and lead to more questions about Schmeichel.
The keeper made several solid saves but was rooted to his line for the first and strangely didn’t move for the second and it undid a lot of heroic defending.
But Celts still refused to buckle and a point was a superb return in the circumstances.
SNAPPY DAIZ
Maeda was at his waspish best against the Italians. The opening goal was a gift for him to tee up Hatate but he was doing his Duracell Bunny routine all night, scaring the wits out of defenders. It was an even tougher shift after Hatate’s dismissal but he ran himself into the ground.
A cynic might suggest he had an added incentive to put on a show with the transfer window still open and the plug pulled on his summer move to Wolfsburg.
O’Neill needs more frontline options to go along with new arrival Tomas Cvancara – not less.
Celtic will have a problem though if a bid comes in and Maeda fancies it, as he wouldn’t be too chuffed missing out again.
FERGIE TIME
It’s rare to see a Scot lining up against his fellow countrymen in Europe – and even more rare to see them skipper their side.
Ferguson has been a star turn in Bologna in recent years but has found himself on the bench in the past few months.
The midfielder was back leading the team against Celtic and while he made life hard for the Hoops with his relentless energy and pressing, it was good news for Scotland fans.
The 26-year-old suffered heartache when he missed Euro 2024 through injury but if he can stay fit and firing, he’ll have a huge role to play at the World Cup this summer.
NO LET UP
The result was huge for Celtic and their hopes of reaching the Europa League knockout stages and a win against Utrecht next week should do it.
But this came at another cost.
Celts have their work cut out on the home front and this gruelling night in Italy was the last thing they needed ahead of Sunday’s massive Premiership showdown with Hearts.
O’Neill will have Cvancara on board but he could have done with a couple more as he’s relying on the same old faces and he’ll have some very weary limbs going to Gorgie.