Celtic’s Champions League hopes are over for another year after goals from Kingsley Coman and Javi Martinez gave Bayern Munich a 2-1 victory in Glasgow.
A first-half defensive mix-up between goalkeeper Craig Gordon and central pair Dedryck Boyata and Nir Bitton gifted the Bundesliga team their opener.
Callum McGregor briefly gave the home side hope as their persistence paid off and he drew them level with 16 minutes left – but Martinez struck just three minutes later to secure an away win.
The result means Brendan Rodgers’ team can only match second-placed Bayern’s points total of nine in Group B.
With a poorer head-to-head record, however, their elimination has been confirmed and their focus now shifts to securing third place and a spot in the Europa League after Christmas instead.
There was a typically frenetic atmosphere as the teams got underway and Celtic almost got off to the perfect start.
James Forrest – in for the injured Patrick Roberts – found Stuart Armstrong but he seemed surprised to receive the ball after Rafinha failed to clear and the midfielder skewed wide.
Moussa Dembele, making his first Champions League start of the season, had a go soon after as good feet took him clear of Jerome Boateng but his finish didn’t match his endeavour.
According to Sky Sports, with Arturo Vidal playing raking passes for fun, Bayern gradually came into the game and Coman, deputising for the injured Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller, became more prominent.
Yet when he put the visitors ahead midway through the first half, it was as a result of Celtic switching off rather than the Frenchman carving them open.
Away ‘keeper Sven Ulreich played a long ball which his opposite number Gordon felt compelled to collect as he charged out of his penalty area to deal with it.
Coman reacted quicker, however, getting away from Boyata, Bitton and Mikael Lustig to cut inside and pick his spot with Gordon stranded.
With that, Bayern grew in confidence at first before Celtic mustered a response, with Dembele almost poking Armstrong’s teasing ball in and the former Fulham player also heading wide.
The hosts went close too after the break, with Armstrong drawing a good save from Ulreich, who then held a Bitton free kick at the second attempt.
The longer play went on, the more frustration set in for Celtic – with Bayern looking increasingly comfortable when they came forward.
ames Rodriguez missed two good opportunities – the second when Gordon got down to save with his feet – and it seemed that might be crucial as Celtic finally equalised.
Unsurprisingly, the excellent Forrest was the architect, first spotting McGregor in space then lifting a cute chip beyond Rafinha for him to finish low under Ulreich.
Parity was restored for less than three minutes, however, as David Alaba lifted in for Martinez to head the winner soon after.
Anderlecht’s 5-0 thrashing by Paris Saint-Germain means the Europa League is all Celtic can hope for now – but they are at least in a good position to drop into that competition with two games left.
