Celtic Secure Slim Win Over St Mirren to Maintain Pressure on Leaders Hearts

Celtic maintained their pursuit of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over St Mirren. The winning goal came in the first half courtesy of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, allowing Martin O'Neill's team to leapfrog Rangers into second place, now just three points adrift of Hearts, who managed a late win against Motherwell. Despite starting strongly, Celtic were not at their best, with Oxlade-Chamberlain's 15th-minute strike, which found the bottom right corner, proving sufficient for the win. The hosts had an early chance ruled out for offside, with Oxlade-Chamberlain initially thought to have opened the scoring before it was disallowed. St Mirren created limited opportunities, with their best chance coming when Jonah Ayunga fired wide after a mazy run. As the game progressed, Celtic's pressure was relentless, but they struggled to extend their lead, with substitute Kelechi Iheanacho missing a golden opportunity to seal the victory. The win marked a significant improvement for Celtic, who were allowed to have their Green Brigade back in the stadium for the first time since November, creating an electric atmosphere in anticipation of their upcoming Scottish Cup semi-final. Following the match, Celtic manager Martin O'Neill expressed concerns over his team's energy levels, particularly in the second half, where they surrendered possession too easily. St Mirren manager Craig McLeish, on the other hand, was disappointed with the outcome but acknowledged the difficulties of playing at Celtic Park and the need for his team to find creativity in the final third to create more scoring opportunities.