Celtic lose 1-4 to Benfica and sit 34th in Europa League — BBC Sport

Scotland's Celtic lost 1-4 to Portugal's Benfica in Lisbon in a Europa League match. After two matches, Martin O'Neill's team are in 34th place among the tournament's 36 participants, BBC Sport reports.

Mistakes before the break

Celtic conceded early: Dane Murray fouled Jhon Durán in his own penalty area, after which the referee awarded a penalty. Later, Sebastian Tounekti allowed Alexander Bah to get ahead of him in the move that preceded Benfica's second goal.

The hosts' third goal was scored by Jhon Durán. Celtic goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo, according to BBC Sport's assessment, let his shot in too easily. The visitors' captain, Callum McGregor, admitted that his team's unforced errors led to the second and third goals conceded.

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O'Neill's reaction

After the break, Celtic improved their play. Camilo Durán reduced the deficit and hit the post, but near the end of the match Vangelis Pavlidis scored Benfica's fourth goal.

Celtic head coach Martin O'Neill positively assessed the team's performance in the second half and said it could still reach the play-off stage. According to him, the players created many chances after the break, although he acknowledged the danger of the opponent's counterattacks.

Celtic have lost four of their last five matches. All of the team's matches against Rangers this season and both European competition fixtures ended in defeats. Forward Kasper Høgh, the club's record signing, failed to score in 10 of his first 11 matches after joining from Bodø/Glimt in the summer and was substituted at half-time in the match against Benfica.