Martin O'Neill brands 'magnificent' former Celtic star as key reason for why Hoops suffered dire Falkirk loss
The Celtic manager has reacted to a calamitous day in Falkirk.
Martin O’Neill says goalkeeper Scott Bain was a major part of why Celtic suffered a 2-0 loss to Falkirk in their latest Premiership match.
The Hoops entered the day knowing they could extend their lead in first due to Rangers and Hearts involvement in the weekend’s Premier Sports Cup semi-final matches. They were unable to do so as they conceded twice in a brutal second half before ex-Celtic keeper Bain made save after save to keep them at bay.
O’Neill’s side remain four points clear of Rangers second and eight ahead of third-placed Hearts but both now have a game in hand. The manager says Bain’s day in goals against his former side was part of the reason defeat was had.
Martin O’Neill on Falkirk 2-0 Celtic
Speaking post-match, O’Neill said: “It’s naturally disappointing. I'm disappointed to have lost the game, first of all. But we had a lot of chances. A lot of chances. The goalkeeper was magnificent all afternoon. Yeah, but naturally we've lost the game, so it's very disappointing.
“They were very poor, from our viewpoint. The first one, we hadn't cleared it, and the second one we've allowed somebody to just run through and pick a spot. But we had some really great chances, we just weren't able to convert. We have conceded some poor goals, and we haven't kept a clean sheet for some time. And that's the essence of a championship team.
“But we're still at the top of the league, and we need to address it. And that's the way out of it. I just thought the goalkeeper had a magnificent game. We should have scored. We should have scored a number in each half at the end of it all. And when you don't, of course it becomes very frustrating. But, yeah, we have to address the fact that we're conceding some goals.
“Hopefully we can do that. And it's still a long season ahead. I think we need to sort out a few things. I was asked a question earlier about confidence in players. If you take Kasper Hogh, for instance, wanting desperately to get a goal, to get off the mark again after his hat-trick quite some time ago. So those things, something might fall for him. But it's not just something might fall. You have to really work at it. That's something that we as a team and players in particular will have to do.”