Celtic fought back from a goal down to secure a dramatic victory over Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership, keeping the pressure on league leaders Heart of Midlothian in the title race.
The visitors stunned the home crowd when Elijah just fired Motherwell ahead after capitalising on a costly mistake from Reo Hatate near the edge of the box.
Celtic responded before half-time when Hyun‑jun Yang punished a defensive error to level the score, setting the stage for a tense second half.
The decisive moment arrived when Motherwell defender Emmanuel Longelo was penalised for holding Daizen Maeda in the penalty area following a VAR review.
Tomas Cvancara calmly converted the resulting spot-kick to put Celtic ahead, while Longelo was also shown a red card for the offence.
With Motherwell reduced to 10 men, Yang struck again to seal the victory for Celtic, ensuring the defending champions collected three crucial points with only eight games remaining in the season.
The match had promised drama before kick-off and delivered an entertaining contest.
Motherwell started brightly and nearly conceded early when Alex Oxlade‑Chamberlain drove a powerful shot that was tipped onto the post by goalkeeper Calum Ward.
Despite Celtic creating several opportunities, Motherwell looked composed and dangerous on the counterattack.
Their breakthrough came when Hatate hesitated in possession, allowing Just to seize the ball and fire into the corner.
Celtic quickly hit back, however, after Tom Sparrow misplaced a pass in his own box.
The ball eventually fell for Yang, who finished emphatically after Ward had initially parried a shot.
Motherwell continued to compete well, even striking the post through Benjamin Nygren as the sides exchanged chances in a lively encounter.
The penalty decision and Longelo’s dismissal ultimately swung the match in Celtic’s favour.
The victory keeps Celtic firmly in the title race and piles pressure on Hearts, who face Kilmarnock later in the weekend.
Meanwhile, third-placed Rangers travel to face St Mirren.
Under manager Martin O'Neill, Celtic once again showed their resilience by grinding out a crucial result even when the performance was far from convincing.
Motherwell, coached by Jens Berthel Askou, will feel unfortunate after a strong display that saw them control possession for long periods and trouble the champions on several occasions.
However, defensive mistakes once again proved costly - much like in their previous defeat at Celtic Park - and the loss likely ends their outside hopes of staying in the title race.
