- Oxlade-Chamberlain fires injury-time winner to keep Celtic’s title bid alive
- Livi had been set for an unlikely point after Robbie Muirhead’s penalty cancelled out Marcelo Saracchi’s opener
- And Celtic boss O’Neill could not be happier to get the former Arsenal and Liverpool man in the door
Martin O’Neill hailed the immediate impact of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after his superb stoppage-time strike saw Celtic snatch a dramatic win over Livingston.
The Parkhead outfit looked on course for a comfortable victory against the Premiership’s bottom side when Marcelo Saracchi netted his first goal for the club.
But with a string of chances being missed, the Lions levelled through Robbie Muirhead’s penalty and looked good for an unlikely point as the game entered added time.
Arriving in the 92nd minute, Oxlade-Chamberlain’s curling strike after coming off the bench ensured Celtic capitalised on Rangers’ slip-up at Fir Park by closing the gap to the Ibrox men to one point with a game in hand.
And O’Neill believes the former Arsenal and Liverpool star’s extraordinary introduction went a long way to vindicating the decision to bring him to Glasgow.
‘He’s been a class player, there’s no question about it,’ said O’Neill. ‘He’s played for big teams and he’s performed brilliantly.
Oxlade-Chamberlain celebrates his crucial goal that saw off Livingston
Oxlade-Chamberlain lets fly from the edge of the penalty area to earn Celtic three points
‘I’m just really delighted to have him. Getting him onto the field, he turns the game for us, which is brilliant.
‘Did I think he was going to be as dramatic as that in scoring the goal? Maybe not. But I think that he can give us something, no question about that.
‘He’s a really decent player and he gets up to speed with things quickly. He’s only done it a couple of days and I couldn’t be more pleased with him.
‘He’s made a big impact, believe it or not, even in the training sessions with the rest of the players, which is always a good sign.
‘I’m just delighted he’s in and I think that when he’s properly fit, he’ll be great for us.’
O’Neill felt the calmness the former England international showed as many around him were panicking demonstrated his class.
‘It was frantic on the pitch and frantic in the dugout as well,’ he said with a smile.
‘It was great and I was right behind it when I saw him. The minute it left his foot, I thought, ‘this is in’. It was just great.
O’Neill was delighted by the impact Oxlade-Chamberlain made when entering the fray
‘He’s incredibly modest about his achievements in the game and he wants to do well.
‘He’s 32 years of age and he should be at the peak of his career.
‘He’s gone off to Turkey for a couple of years, perhaps no one wanted to take him.
‘He’s come up here and he wants to have a go, which is great.’
Despite the dramatic win, O’Neill admitted that his side have to be more clinical in front of goal.
‘Honestly, I think we could have been well ahead after 20 minutes in the game,’ he said.
‘We get the goal and then you’re hoping to add the second one. We did have chances before the goal and we had a couple of chances after it.
‘I’ve said to the players at half-time, the game’s still in the balance. Because you know that Livingston are very, very strong with good set-piece deliveries and things like you see have caused us plenty of problems.’
