Celtic secured a narrow 1-0 victory over St Mirren, keeping them within three points of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts. The winning goal came in the 15th minute courtesy of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, allowing Martin O'Neill's side to leapfrog Rangers into second place. Despite a strong start, Celtic struggled to find their rhythm, with Oxlade-Chamberlain's early strike, which followed a disallowed goal, proving the difference. St Mirren, who shocked Celtic with a 3-1 win in the Premier Sports Cup in December, were limited to just one shot on target.
Celtic's substitute Kelechi Iheanacho missed a golden opportunity to seal the win in the second half, but the hosts held on for a hard-fought victory. The match marked the return of the Green Brigade to Celtic Park for the first time since November, and they were in fine voice ahead of next week's Scottish Cup semi-final.
Celtic thought they had taken an early lead when Callum McGregor's shot was parried, but Oxlade-Chamberlain's rebound was ruled out for offside. St Mirren's Jonah Ayunga and Miguel Freckleton both had chances, but Celtic took the lead when Benjamin Nygren found McGregor, whose shot was blocked, and Kieran Tierney picked out Oxlade-Chamberlain to score.
Tomas Cvancara nearly doubled the lead, but collided with goalkeeper Shamal George, who was replaced by Ryan Mullen. The second half was a midfield battle, with Iheanacho missing the best chance at the near post.
St Mirren's Jacob Devaney and Roland Idowu tried their luck from distance, but Celtic held on. Martin O'Neill expressed concerns over his team's energy levels, while St Mirren boss Craig McLeish was disappointed not to take any points, citing a lack of creativity in the final third.