Celtic will go into the second leg of their Champions League playoff tie with Malmo just one goal to the good after recording a 3-2 victory over the Swedish outfit this evening.
The hosts looked on course for the group stages following a perfect start to the match that saw Leigh Griffiths and Nir Bitton both find the net inside the opening 10 minutes.
Former Celtic man Jo Inge Berget pulled one back with a crisp volley seven minutes into the second half, but a defensive error allowed Griffiths to double his personal tally and restore his side's two-goal lead.
However, it was Malmo who would have the last laugh deep into injury time as Berget fired home from close range to clinch a second away goal for the visitors to take into next week's return leg.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look into an entertaining contest in Glasgow.
Match statistics
CELTIC
Shots: 7
On target: 4
Possession: 59%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 14
MALMO
Shots: 10
On target: 4
Possession: 41%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 13
Was the result fair?
Late goals often affect the fairness of a result, and tonight was no different. Celtic certainly deserved the victory on the night, and a two-goal margin would not have flattered them. Indeed, they could have been out of sight within 15 minutes as Ronny Deila's side came flying out of the blocks. In addition to the two goals they scored in that period, Stefan Johansen also missed a really good chance for a third that surely would have wrapped up the match and perhaps even the tie.
As it happened, Celtic took their foot off the pedal a little after that, and the cliche about 2-0 being a dangerous lead began to ring true. The hosts' intensity dropped a little, and while they were first to every ball during the opening 15 minutes, suddenly Malmo began to see more possession and gain a foothold in the game. Celtic were still on top for the rest of the first half, but it was not one-way traffic as it had been at the start of the game.
Malmo began the second half more brightly and were the better side for a short spell at the start of it. Berget's first goal cranked up the nerves amongst the hosts, and they looked less certain both in possession and defensively during that period. A somewhat fortuitous Griffiths goal calmed things down again, though, and they looked destined to see out the victory until Malmo's late second. That 95th-minute strike could have a telling impact on the tie, and Deila will be furious that his side weren't able to see the game out.
Celtic's performance
Very much a mixed bag. It will go down as a victory, but the Celtic players won't be feeling particularly jubilant right now having let in that second away goal right at the death. Deila's teamtalk would have been written for him after Age Hareide questioned the Bhoys' quality, and they came out like a team determined to shove those words down the Malmo manager's throat. That looked like being the case too, with the visitors unable to cope with an electric Celtic as they raced into an early two-goal lead.
As mentioned, things could have been even better had Johansen tucked away his chance, and it would have been very hard to see Malmo recovering from a third goal inside 15 minutes. The big disappointment from the opening 45 minutes will be that the hosts were unable to build on that. Malmo were there for the taking, but the likes of Stuart Armstrong and Griffiths were unable to add a third before the break, while their dominance began to wane as the half wore on.
The way they began the second half was the polar opposite of how they started the first, with nerves evident, particularly after Malmo had halved the deficit. However, they began to look comfortable again when they restored their two-goal lead and, while they rarely looked like adding to that, they were keeping the visitors quiet at the other end until the late show. A 3-1 lead would have made Celtic clear favourites for the second leg, but for many they will now be underdogs going to Sweden next Tuesday.
Malmo's performance
It is safe to say that, after 10 minutes of this match, Hareide may have been regretting his pre-match comments regarding Celtic. His side were very slow off the mark, and they simply couldn't get close to a rampant Celtic in the opening stages. Credit must go to the hosts for the way they played in that period, but Malmo looked sluggish, short of ideas and tactically inept during that spell. The third goal was always likely to be crucial, and they were fortunate that Celtic were unable to find it before half time.
The main problem for Malmo in the first half was that they were consistently outfought and outnumbered in midfield, which allowed Celtic to dominate. As soon as that was addressed, the visitors were able to gain more of a foothold in the match and prevent Deila's side from running riot. They still only managed one notable long-range effort in the first half, but they did improve as the opening 45 minutes wore on, and carried that on at the start of the second period.
But for a poor defensive error that handed the initiative back to Celtic, they could have even levelled things up on the night in the second half. They were on top and had Celtic spooked a little, but Griffiths's header put paid to that. Clear chances remained few and far between for the visitors, but when one finally arrived in the fifth minute of stoppage time, Berget snapped it up. They are perhaps a little fortunate to only be trailing by one, but those away goals will give them plenty of confidence that they can complete the job at home next week.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Leigh Griffiths: Given the nod ahead of Nadir Ciftci, who has started all of Celtic's other European matches so far, Griffiths was handed a chance to shine on the continental stage and he grabbed it with both hands. He opened the scoring inside three minutes with a well-taken goal, and got what was a crucial third for his side with an opportunistic piece of play, pouncing on a defensive error. Ciftci remains suspended for domestic action but, when he returns, he will have a job on to usurp Griffiths up front on this form.
Biggest gaffe
Johan Wiland deserves a mention here for not coming to claim the corner that provided Celtic's second goal, but Anton Tinnerholm was guilty of an even bigger error in the second half. He allowed a cross to bounce inside his own penalty area before sending his attempted headed clearance straight up into the air. He was then beaten to the second ball by Griffiths, who looped his header over the keeper and in off the post.
Referee performance
Felix Brych had good points and bad points to his performance today. He was initially lenient with his cards, not producing any until the 68th minute, but from that point on he booked a number of players for incidents or challenges that didn't really warrant them.
What next?
Celtic: The Bhoys will look to maintain their unbeaten start to the season against Dundee United at Tannadice Park on Saturday lunchtime.
Malmo: Malmo, meanwhile, continue their title charge away to Hacken, also on Saturday.
Barney Corkhill
