Sebastian Tounekti began brightly for the home side but Kasper Schmeichel’s wayward passing was putting his side under plenty of pressure. He had a shocker in the 20th minute when he allowed Ricardo Horta’s long-range strike to hit the back of the net.
Braga ended the first half in the ascendancy which saw Brendan Rodgers make personnel and formation changes at half-time.
Kelechi Iheanacho pounced on a poor pass from Florian Grillitsch and scored but Tobias Stieler incorrectly ruled that he had handled the ball, VAR taking a long time to confirm the referee’s decision.
Kieran Tierney and Tounekti forced saves from Hornicek who single handedly maintained Braga’s advantage, Gabri Martínez coming off the bench to seal the victory in the 85th minute.
Schmeichel struggles, Horta takes advantage
Sebastian Tounekti had a lively start to the game, his cross going begging before he skipped inside Yanis da Rocha and tested Lukas Hornicek. The home side began to make errors in their own half that allowed Braga into the game.
Kasper Schmeichel was having a shocker with his feet and the goalkeeper would soon see the difficulties shift to his hands. Ricardo Horta tried his luck from distance in the 20th minute, his shot swerving ever so slightly which was enough to bamboozle Schmeichel and nestle in the net.
The Warriors maintained the pressure with Pau Victor firing at Schmeichel before the 38-year-old tipped Florian Grillitsch’s effort over the bar. The midfielder saw another attempt diverted wide before the break which couldn’t have come sooner for Brendan Rodgers and his side.
Rodgers brought on Marcelo Saracchi for Colby Donovan and switched to a back three, Yanis Da Rocha picking up a knock in the opening 45 minutes and making way for Victor Gómez,
Controversy
Amine El Ouazzani curled an effort wide before the tide turned in favour of the hosts, Kelechi Iheanacho pouncing on a poor pass from Grillitsch, beating two defenders and putting the ball into the net. Referee Tobias Stieler incorrectly ruled the goal out for handball, the VAR doubling down on the error and backing up Stieler's decision.
Celtic stayed on the front foot with Benjamin Nygren’s corner finding Kieran Tierney at the back post, his header producing a sharp save from Hornicek. The home crowd were making themselves heard as Carlos Vicens brought on João Moutinho for Grillitsch.
Both managers began going tit for tat with substitutions, Rodgers introducing Arne Engels and Reo Hatate for Benjamin Nygren and Paulo Bernardo, Horta and Pau Victor making way for Diego Rodrigues and Rodrigo Zalazar.
Hornicek makes flying save
Tounekti began to take matters into his own hands, the winger skipping into the box and firing a fierce strike that forced a spectacular save from Hornicek. Engels’ corner was then headed over the bar by Cameron Carter-Vickers.
There would be no equaliser however, Gabri Martínez coming on for Amine El Ouazzani and putting the game to bed in the 85th minute. Rodrigues’ effort was saved before Martínez saw his shot blocked, the substitute getting another chance from the rebound and making no mistake.
The Celtic supporters started streaming out of the stadium, their side failing to score at home in back to back games.
Braga bounce back
Braga have been struggling in the Primeira Liga, unable to win in five games which includes home defeats to Gil Vicente and Nacional. They have found some joy in the Europa League, winning 1-0 against an understrength Feyenoord and taking all three points from a struggling Celtic side.
Kasper Schmeichel had a shocker and Lukas Hornicek was close to flawless, an obvious comparison between the goalkeepers that played a big role in the result. The decision to disallow Kelechi Iheanacho’s goal was a shocker, it would have brought the home crowd into the equation and put Celtic in a great position to go on with the job.
Putting their Europa League opponents’ issues and refereeing decisions aside, Carlos Vicens deserves some credit for shaking things up and making six changes to his starting side in Glasgow. Victor Carvalho, Yanis Da Rocha, Florian Grillitsch, Jean-Baptiste Gorby, Pau Victor and Amine El Quazzani came in with Sikou Niakaté, Victor Gomez, João Moutinho, Gabriel Moscardo, Rodrigo Zalazar and Fran Navarro making way.
Braga stood up to be counted and got the job done, the question now is if they can keep it going on the domestic front, especially with their next match coming against Sporting CP at Estádio José Alvalade.
(Photos: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
