Celtic had to settle for a point in battling circumstances as their 2-0 lead was lost after playing over an hour with 10-men.
The Hoops were hoping for a quick start and were gifted the chance to take the lead as a poor pass from the Bologna goalkeeper was seized upon by Daizen Maeda.
He was then able to easily roll the ball back to Reo Hatate, who just needed to guide the ball into the back of an empty net.
Things were going very well up until Hatate went from hero to zero as he earned himself an early bath with two yellow cards in three minutes. While the Celtic players protested the decision, there really could be no complaints over the call.
Despite the one-man disadvantage the Bhoys were able to rally together and double their lead as Kieran Tierney’s corner was flicked on by Arne Engels into the path of Auston Trusty, who got his foot to the ball in time and gave the Hoops a two-goal lead going into the break.
The hosts did pull one back shortly before the hour mark as Thijs Dallinga’s header couldn’t be kept out by Kasper Schmeichel, who palmed it into his net.
Bologna then made their dominance count and equalised as Jonathon Rowe curled one into the top corner past Schmeichel.
After holding the Italian side for the rest of the game, it can probably be considered a very good point.
WHAT AN EFFORT! Great point or wasted opportunity?
Celtic player ratings
Kasper Schmeichel – 7
One of his best performances in a while. Stood up strong, made some great saves and his experience was a big help. Should have done better with the goal but it thankfully didn’t cost the Bhoys.
Colby Donovan – 7
A solid display from the youngster. A big call from O’Neill to put him in the starting XI but he lived up to the task for the 75 minutes or so that he played.
Auston Trusty – 9
Colossal from the big man. Defended like his life depended on it and was a real leader at the back. Definitely getting back to his best again and he even managed to bag a rare goal.
Liam Scales – 7
Kieran Tierney – 7
A brilliant corner into the box for Celtic’s second goal. Spent a large portion of the game under the cosh, as expected, but did well.
Callum McGregor (C)
Practically became a defender for the night once Celtic were reduced to 10-men and worked his socks off.
Arne Engels – 6
Great header for the second goal. Wasn’t able to get going after that due to the defensive duties he had to provide.
Reo Hatate – 3
Reo Hatate’s Celtic career was summed up by that first half. Opens the scoring by being in the right place at the right time, as well as trying to make things tick. He then undid all of that with two silly yellow cards in three minutes and left his teammates with some serious work to do.
Hyunjun Yang – 6
Had a great chance in the first half but couldn’t convert it and was restricted from running at defenders due to the situation.
Sebastian Tounekti – 5
Have to feel sorry for him as he was withdrawn to help protect the two-goal lead following the red card. Although he wasn’t in the game much it was a good tactical decision to make.
Daizen Maeda – 7
His whole game plan had to change after the red card. As expected, Maeda ran and ran and ran all night long to provide defence from the front. A proper team player performance.
Substitutes
Benjamin Nygren – 6
Anthony Ralston – 6
Johnny Kenny – 6
Paulo Bernardo – 5
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