Celtic suffers Europa League defeat ahead of Old Firm clash

Celtic endured more disappointment with a 3-1 loss to Ferencvaros in their Europa League opener at Parkhead on Thursday, September 17, 2026. This defeat came on the heels of a harsh 3-0 defeat by Rangers in the Scottish League Cup just days earlier, which had shocked Martin O’Neill’s side.

Celtic fell behind in the 20th minute when Bamidele Yusuf’s shot deflected off defender Liam Scales and into the net. The home side found an equalizer just before halftime, thanks to a 12-yard strike from Mika Baur, who was called up to the Germany national team this week. However, the joy was short-lived; in added time of the first half, Ferencvaros captain Kristoffer Zachariassen restored his side’s lead.

In the second half, former Celtic forward Daniel Arzani scored a stunning long-distance shot just two minutes in, extending the visitors’ advantage. Despite a shaky goalkeeper performance from on-loan Sam Johnstone against Rangers, O’Neill made changes, substituting him for Viljami Sinisalo.

Celtic made several attempts to get back into the match, with efforts from Callum McGregor, James Forrest, and Camilo Duran but could not find the back of the net consistently. Nygren had a curling shot saved and later missed an open goal opportunity from 30 yards after a keeper error. Four substitutions followed as O’Neill sought a spark from his bench, but ultimately, Celtic could not recover from the early mistakes.

As attention turned to the upcoming Old Firm clash on Sunday, Celtic faced the prospect of needing to secure their fans' confidence and support against their oldest rivals.