CELTIC goalkeeper Joe Hart has held his hands up to the blunder that gifted RB Leipzig a goal at a crucial juncture in their 3-1 defeat in the Red Bull Arena, but says that is the price of playing football the way that manager Ange Postecoglou wants to.
Hart passed the ball to Leipzig midfielder Dominic Szoboszlai who immediately fed Andre Silva to put the German side 2-1 ahead during a topsy-turvy encounter that has ultimately left Celtic with a formidable task on their hands to reach the knockout stages of the Champions League.
But while admitting that his error proved costly, Hart defended the principles that led him to try such a risky pass at a critical stage of the game.
"I am at fault for the second goal - no doubt about it,” Hart said. "But that's the way the manager wants us to play and that is how we play.
"Sometimes it is going to hurt us but most of the time, as we showed, it works to get us through the press and get opportunities to score.
"They were pressing with three and I wasn't sure whether to go to the centre half or Greg Taylor. I went for Greg and I missed. Those are the simple facts.
"But this is high-level football and something that I love playing. You make a mistake and you get punished.
"It was an intense game, a good game between two teams playing good football.
"We came unstuck more than they did.”
Meanwhile, Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou gave a gloomy initial prognosis on his captain Callum McGregor, who limped off during the first half of the game with a knee injury.
“We don’t know yet but the fact he felt he had to come off suggests it’s not something small,” Postecoglou said.
“We’ll just have to wait and see and wait and see what the medical team say.”
