CELTIC WERE LEFT to rue missed chances as Ange Postecoglou’s side were held 1-1 by Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League group stage in Warsaw on Wednesday.
Artem Bondarenko’s own goal gave Celtic an early lead in Shakhtar’s temporary home in the Polish capital, but Mykhailo Mudryk equalised with a thumping finish after running in behind the visitors’ defence.
The Scottish champions forced Shakhtar goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin into a series of saves and applied late pressure but had to settle for a point, their first in the competition since their last appearance in 2017-18.
There was no minute’s silence for the Queen following discussions between both clubs and UEFA but both sets of players wore black armbands.
Off the pitch, some of the visiting fans made their anti-monarchy views known. A banner in the Celtic end stated “F*** the Crown” while another one said “Sorry for your loss Michael Fagan”, a reference to the intruder who broke into the Queen’s Buckingham Palace bedroom in 1982.
Early in the match, there was a chant of “If you hate the Royal Family, clap your hands” but the Celtic fans quickly had some positive play to get behind.
After paying the price for not capitalising on a strong start in last week’s 3-0 loss to Real Madrid, Celtic threatened with just a minute gone here when Trubin blocked from Kyogo Furuhashi.
The Hoops made the breakthrough on 10 minutes as Sead Haksabanovic slid the ball through for Reo Hatate, whose attempt deflected off a sliding Bondarenko and trickled into the net.
Celtic nearly made it 2-0 when Moritz Jenz’s shot was kept out by Trubin’s leg. It proved a key stop as Shakhtar soon levelled.
Georgiy Sudakov threaded a pass through the Celtic backline, with Mudryk racing on to it before lashing an unerring finish past Joe Hart.
Hart denied Shakhtar a second by turning behind a curling strike from former Celtic forward Marian Shved. Trubin shovelled away a dipping shot by Portuguese winger Jota to start the second half.
Matt O’Riley’s effort from range was tipped to safety as Celtic continued to create opportunities. Substitutes Giorgos Giakoumakis and Daizen Maeda both went agonisingly close late on.
Additional reporting by PA
