Celtic’s struggle in the Champions League continued as they failed to secure a win against Atletico Madrid, extending their winless streak to 13 games in over six years.
Despite taking the lead early on through Kyogo Furuhashi’s goal, Atletico twice managed to come from behind and earn a 2-2 draw at Parkhead.
The result meant Celtic remained at the bottom of Group E, unable to climb up the table even if they had won the game, following Feyenoord’s victory over Lazio earlier in the day.
Celtic started the match positively and was rewarded in the 7th minute when Furuhashi scored a well-worked goal, courtesy of Matt O’Riley’s brilliant assist.
However, Atletico soon found their way back into the game and equalized through Antoine Griezmann’s penalty, which came after a clumsy foul by Greg Taylor.
Although Joe Hart saved the initial penalty, the rebound fell straight to Griezmann, who made no mistake with his second attempt.
Undeterred by the setback, Celtic regained the lead just three minutes later with Luis Palma hitting a powerful shot past Jan Oblak.
The home team continued to create chances and came close to extending their lead, but the Atletico goalkeeper made a crucial save to deny O’Riley.
At halftime, Atletico coach Diego Simeone made some tactical changes, bringing on Marcos Llorente, who made an immediate impact by setting up Alvaro Morata’s equalizer in the 58th minute.
Atletico then pushed for a winner, but their efforts were hampered by Rodrigo De Paul’s late red card.
Celtic, however, failed to capitalize on Atletico’s numerical disadvantage and looked uncertain on whether to push for a win or settle for a point.
Atletico, on the other hand, were content with a draw and defended deep to ensure they left Scotland with a point.
Despite Celtic’s impressive performance against a top European team, their failure to win matches in the Champions League has become a familiar theme.
The result leaves Atletico in a strong position to progress to the knockout stages, whereas Celtic’s chances of qualifying look slim, with just three games left to play in the group stage.
