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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Aidan Smith

'They're not robots' - Ange Postecoglou snaps back over Celtic frustration question

Ange Postecoglou defended his players as he was quizzed on his frustrations over Celtic's performance at Ibrox against Rangers.

The Scottish Champions came from behind late on to claim a point, which could be vitally important in the title race.

Daizen Maeda raced Celtic into an early lead before goals from Ryan Kent and James Tavernier put Rangers ahead.

It looked certain that Michael Beale was going to grab a win in his first derby as a manager, but Kyogo popped up with two minutes remaining to ensure that the points were shared.

Reflecting on his team's performance, Postecoglou told Sky Sports: "Everything's pleasing in terms of it's a difficult place to come to. They threw everything at us, they knew how important the game was in the context of the league and everything else so for the most part, we handled that OK.

"It is just human beings mate. They are not robots. It is a big occasion, it is a big game. I just thought we tightened up in areas where our football is usually a lot more free-flowing. We didn’t do that today.

"Great game of football, mate. Before we get into the analysis I thought it was a cracking game for everyone - all eyes are on this game not just in Scotland but everywhere around the world and I thought both teams were at it today.

"It was a cracking game - I thought we started it really well and then we just lost control of it, mainly self-inflicted because of our passing and making mistakes, errors in our passing that we don't usually do. It allowed them to get back into it and they got a bit of momentum particularly with the crowd behind them.

"At the beginning of the second half they took a foothold for 15-20 minutes. But then great spirit and resilience shown by the lads. It's very easy on a day like this to resign yourself to our fate but we haven't done that - this year or last year - and we found a way."

Our Celtic Digest newsletter brings exclusive content directly to you rather than solely through the website. You can already find us on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram but we will also send bespoke opinion pieces and special features directly to your email inbox every evening. Not only will you receive this article from Sean Martin, Tony Haggerty or Aidan Macdonald (or, sometimes, from all three) but you will also get easy access to our best content from the last 24 hours too. It’s a great way to keep up to date with what’s happening at Ange Postecoglou’s Scottish champions. To sign up, simply take five seconds to type in your email here. Simple!

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