Reaction: Celtic defender feared victory would slip from his grasp after handing visitors a chance

Hugh Macdonald
Chief Sports Writer

IT was a match decided on two moments.

Peter Enckelman came off the bench to allow Georgios Samaras's shot through his legs to give Celtic the victory against Hearts yesterday. Then in the closing stages of the match Efe Ambrose, the Celtic defender, donated the ball to Hearts, but Andrew Driver shot past the post from an excellent position.

Enckelman, making his debut after coming on for the injured Jamie MacDonald, was punished for his error. Ambrose escaped unscathed.

"I was concerned that Hearts might score when I gave the ball away, definitely," said Ambrose. "That was a big chance for Hearts. So I was happy that it was cleared."

Enckelman was more contrite. "I thought it was a bit soft from our point of view," said the goalkeeper. "I tried to read him. I thought he was going to go across me but he hit it with pace and then that is when anything can happen. I thought standing up I had a much better chance of saving it. I was a bit cross with myself."

Ambrose, with the benefit of having been in a winning team, was predictably upbeat about "the greatest week" when Celtic have achieved their first away win in the Champions League group stages and now lead the Clydesdale Bank Premier League. "It's been a terrific week for the players, the club and the fans of Celtic," he said.

He dismissed suggestions that the players were fatigued after their efforts this week.

"I felt okay. At the same time, it's not been easy because we've played a lot of games. Sometimes this happens when you play a lot, because the Champions League is very hard," he said.

Ambrose will now continue his labours by flying out to play for Nigeria against Liberia. "After our victory in Moscow, we knew it was going to be difficult," he said. "The Champions League is so tough, a journey that far, it takes time to recover. But we believed in our mental ability and our strength, which meant we could withstand anything [Hearts] threw at us."

Taken from the Herald