Barry Smith happy despite Dundee defeat

Dundee manager Barry Smith has said that he was pleased with his side's performance following their 2-0 defeat to Celtic at Dens Park.

Giorgios Samaras fired Celtic ahead early on with an overhead kick, but it took the Scottish champions until the 71st minute to seal the win courtesy of a lob by Gary Hooper.

"We said to them at half time that they had defended relatively well and made it difficult for Celtic," Smith told Sky Sports News. "But we needed them to be a wee bit braver on the ball and I think in the second half they came out and did that.

"At 1-0 the keeper has made a world-class save [to deny Colin Nish] and you don't know what would have happened if it had gone to 1-1.

"But the players kept fighting away and we're happy with the performance in terms of keeping the ball for a good 20 to 25 minutes anyway."

Dundee are nine points adrift at the bottom of the SPL table, having taken just 12 points from their opening 19 matches.