Celtic 1-3 AC Milan – Scots fall short in Europa League opener

Neil Lennon was “encouraged” despite the fact that his Celtic side were outclassed by Serie A leaders AC Milan in the first match of the Europa League group stage in Glasgow.

Lennon’s men bounced back after two halftime changes, with a header from substitute Mohamed Elyounoussi giving the Scottish champions hope before Jens Petter Hauge was late to secure the Rossoneri victory.

“It was noticeably better than the weekend. It was encouraging,” said the Celtic coach. “I don’t like to lose, but there were a lot of good signs for me.

“I wanted an improvement and we got a big improvement. Part of me is quite satisfied with that.

“We could have avoided everything after the criticism that we have received and I have received, but they showed their personality in the second part.”

Alarm bells were ringing for Celtic fans after the weekend’s loss, a game in which they failed to register a shot on goal. With that in mind, violating the Serie A defense seemed like a difficult task.

While Patryk Klimala was trusted at the weekend, Lennon called up Albian Ajeti and Leigh Griffiths on the attack here, but neither had the serve to make an impact during a bleak first half.

Too often good positions were not capitalized on, and Milan showed Celtic how it’s done at the other end.

Samu Castillejo was given time to float on a mocking cross in which Shane Duffy got caught. Young defender Stephen Welsh was not close enough to Krunic, and the Bosnian looked in the opener in the 14th minute.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s European debut came 19 years ago against Celtic for Ajax, but the Swedish legend had to settle for a role in preparation for a fluid second.

The move began when Milan swooped into a retreating Celtic defense and the ball was sent to Diaz. Duffy didn’t get close enough when Callum McGregor tried to help, but the Spaniard’s cold ending bypassed them both to make two of them.

The Italians were sailing and Celtic needed an answer. Lennon managed to conjure it up with Ryan Christie and Elyounoussi coming off the bench at halftime. His spark, along with a switch to four at the rear later in the half, changed this game as Milan began to creak.

The impressive Diego Laxalt volleyed a bit more on a warning shot, before Elyounoussi’s short run and header from a Christie corner raised hopes of a comeback. One can only imagine the answer if Celtic Park were not empty.

With just over 10 minutes left to play, Milan winced and retired. Celtic tried and pushed but couldn’t find a leveler that their second-half display could have deserved.

Instead, Hauge’s injury-time goal on the breakaway was a serious blow as Celtic’s group campaign began with a loss.

Man of the match – Diego Laxalt

What did we learn?

That Celtic have a squad capable of changing the game. They were far from their best in the first half, but they seemed revitalized the further the game progressed.

Much of that will come down to Christie’s added injection of creativity. Olivier Ntcham also responded well with the introduction of Tom Rogic and Elyounoussi.

However, there are still reasons for concern. In the first period, Celtic often looked shaky, and the continued absence of Odsonne Edouard, who is still recovering from Covid-19, there is no ready-made replacement Lennon can rely on.

Match statistics

• Celtic have lost each of their last four games against AC Milan, three times in the Champions League before this defeat.
• AC Milan’s last two shots in this match were their second and third goals, which came in the 42nd and 92nd minute respectively.
• Elyounoussi has been directly involved in seven goals in 10 Europa League group stage appearances (five goals, two assists).
• Krunic scored his first goal for AC Milan in his 25th appearance for the club. He also became the first Bosnian player to score a European goal for Milan.
• Ibrahimovic (39 years 19 days) became the oldest outfield player to start a European match with AC Milan since Paolo Maldini (40 years 245 days) in February 2009 against Werder Bremen.

Whats Next?

Celtic will try to get back on track to victory in the Scottish Premiership, but will face a difficult visit to Aberdeen (12:00 GMT). A trip to Lille next Thursday offers the next round of the Europa League.