Celtic were expected to have a tough game against Motherwell and that is exactly what happened. The visitors took the lead through Elijah Just, incidentally someone that the Hoops have been linked with in recent weeks.

Martin O'Neill's side did show character to get back into the game. Yang Hyun-jun scored the equaliser.

For a while, it had looked like the game was headed for a draw. But the real turning point came around the 70th-minute mark.

Emmanuel Longelo was sent off for Motherwell, and Celtic were handed a penalty kick after a VAR check. Tomas Cvancara made no mistake from the spot, just like at Ibrox, and put the Hoops ahead.

The game was then put to bed in the 79th minute as Yang scored his second of the day and made it 3-1 to Celtic. There was no coming back for Motherwell from that, as they were already a man and two goals down away at Parkhead.

Jens Berthel Askou's side did give a good account of themselves though, and do not be surprised if Celtic do come calling for the manager at the end of the season. The kind of job that he has done with this Motherwell team is impressive to say the very least. Of course, Robbie Keane, Craig Bellamy and Roberto Martinez are believed to be potential candidates for the job as well.

As for the Rangers, they were not particularly happy with anything that happened on the day. And the fact that John Beaton was the referee appeared to make it more difficult.

One Rangers fan wrote on X: "Cheating Beaton strikes again."

Another wrote: "A penalty and red card in your favour. Worst conspiracy ever."

Of course, there were some Celtic fans ready to point out the obvious. One replied: "You do know it was VAR that made the decision and that Beaton missed it despite being a yard away. Glad you tuned in though."

At the end of the day, it was the right decision. Of course, whenever Beaton referees a Celtic game, it becomes a point of discussion.

The result does give Celtic some breathing space. On the other hand, they have also put some pressure on title rivals Hearts and Rangers with the early win on this matchday.

Hearts have an away game against Kilmarnock coming up. Of course, Killie have been poor this season and find themselves sitting at 11th in the league. But Celtic's win does put pressure on Derek McInnes' side to get a win if they want to maintain that five-point lead.

Many teams can crumble under that kind of pressure. McInnes' side do not have the experience of being in these situations. So, we will see what Hearts are made of this weekend.

On the other hand, Rangers also have an away game coming up. They will make the trip to take on St Mirren. If they do not win, it might very well be the end of them in this title race once and for all.

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