Celtic beat Dundee Utd to restore nine-point lead

Celtic restored their nine-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership as they ground down Dundee United’s stubborn resistance after the break.

A more resilient United held out until Jota headed home an Aaron Mooy cross.

Five minutes later, Mooy slotted home a spot kick after Jota’s flick struck Kieran Freeman’s hand.

Celtic’s fifth game in a row without conceding means they have scored 18 times and lost just one goal in their latest five visits to Tannadice.

It leaves United in third bottom place on goal difference, tied on points with Motherwell, Ross County and Kilmarnock, and without a win against Celtic in 19 games since a 2-1 win at Tannadice in December 2014.

Both managers agreed pre-match that United are a different beast since that August humiliation.

Not surprisingly, though, Mark Birighitti was the busier goalkeeper, the Australian being fortunate not see a clearance charged down by Kyogo Furuhashi nestling behind him before blocking at the Japanese striker’s feet after also saving low from a Jota drive.

Craig Sibbald blocked from midfield counterpart Mooy in front of the United goal before Birighitti bravely punched clear off the head of Kyogo only to see referee Don Robertson point to the penalty spot after the striker was caught by the goalkeeper’s follow through.

Whether VAR decided there was no foul, or a Celtic player had been offside, Robertson was instructed to have a check on the screen and reversed his decision.

However, there was no reprieve shortly after half time when Birighitti appeared to lose his bearings as Mooy launched a deep cross and Jota headed in precisely from a difficult angle.

Celtic ensured the victory soon after as Freeman stuck out a hand and Mooy was given the opportunity from the penalty spot to slot his third goal in two games as the visitors could comfortably afford a close-range miss from Daizen Maeda in the dying seconds.

Player of the match – Jota (Celtic)

More to follow.

What’s next?

United visit relegation rivals Kilmarnock as Celtic host in-form Livingston on Wednesay (both 19:45 GMT).