Celtic ended a 10-year wait for a home Champions League victory on Wednesday as they defeated Feyenoord 2-1.
Luis Palma gave Celtic a first half lead from a penalty. The Dutch side drew level with just under 10 minutes to play through Yankuba Minteh before Gustaf Lagerbielke nodded Matt O'Riley's superb cross to the net as the clock ticked into injury time.
Despite the win - their first at home since beating Ajax in 2013 and their first in the competition since beating Anderlecht in 2017 - Celtic still finished bottom of a group which was won by Atletico Madrid and had Lazio finishing as runners-up.
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"We’ve had games where we’ve not got results, and we were desperate to get a win and it meant a lot to us," Ireland international Liam Scales, Man of the Match for the game, told Celtic TV.
🌟 Star Bhoy!
Congratulations to Liam Scales on his #UCL Player of the Match award 💪#CelticFeyenoord | #COYBIG🍀 pic.twitter.com/C9z2M5xwmX— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) December 13, 2023
"I know, on paper, it looked like a dead rubber with the way the table was, but to us it was massive to win a game, especially at home. It was amazing.
"I thought in the first-half we were really-really good. We were good on the ball and then in the second half we had to dig in.
"To concede late on and come back and get a goal just shows great spirit and I’m delighted for big Gus to get the goal.
"On the back of a bad result at the weekend, that gives us massive confidence now until the break. We’ve got massive games coming up and we just want to go and win every single one. That’s the plan and this will kick-start us now.
"We showed in the first-half really how high a standard we can get to and we need to continue that.”
Rome, Italy 28th November 2023: Liam Scales of Celtic during the UEFA Champions League 2023-24 match against Lazio. Editorial credit: Raffaele Conti 88 / Shutterstock.com
Scales, who joined Celtic from Shamrock Rovers two years ago, has had a breakthrough season at the Scottish club.
"I always felt like if I got a chance to play here consistently, I could do well," the defender told BBC Scotland.
"It was just about trying to get that chance. With the quality of the squad, it was going to be difficult. I'm just delighted that I have. For it to go that way since getting that chance has been brilliant.
"As a footballer, you've go to treat every day the same, go in and train as well as you can. I just need to keep the way I've been playing, stay hungry. We want to win games, we want to win trophies here.
"I haven't achieved much here. The first season I was here, we won the League Cup and the league but I didn't feature that much. Then, going on loan [to Aberdeen], I missed out on a really successful season. I want to have that for myself."
