AFP/Glasgow

 

Juventus all but clinched their place in the last eight of the Champions League after a clinical display from the Italian champions earned them a 3-0 win over Celtic at Parkhead here on Tuesday.

Celtic manager Neil Lennon surprised everyone before kick-off as he handed Efe Ambrose a starting place despite the defender playing in Nigeria’s Africa Cup of Nations final win over Burkina Faso on Sunday. 

But the gamble went horribly wrong with the defender at fault for two of Juve’s deadly away goals.

Celtic got off to a nightmare start when Ambrose was caught out by the flight of Federico Peluso’s long ball in the third minute, allowing Alessandro Matri to get in behind him and fire the ball over the line despite Kelvin Wilson’s desperate attempted clearance on the line.

The Hoops then showed the intensity they had produced to pick up a famous win over Barcelona in the group stages as they laid siege to the Juve goal, with Victor Wanyama and Kris Commons both testing Gianluigi Buffon with strikes.

But the Italians weathered the storm and increased their lead in the 77th minute when Marchisio smashed a shot past Fraser Forster.

Mirko Vucinic finished low through Forster’s legs in the 83rd minute after Ambrose had been caught in possession by Marchisio as Juventus ended any remaining Celtic hopes.

“That’s the harsh reality of football at this level,” a clearly disappointed Lennon said.

“We didn’t obviously get off to a great start but our reaction to the goal was fantastic and for 70 or 80 minutes we were the better side.

“But it wasn’t to be and the second goal burst the bubble a little bit. When you make defensive mistakes at this level you get punished and that was the case tonight.” 

Juventus coach Antonio Conte was delighted with how his side handled a hostile crowd.

“It was a difficult match and in this atmosphere with Celtic playing with the intensity they did we could have lost the match,” he said.

“But my players kept their heads and showed great maturity and overall it was an excellent result for us.”

Things could have been different for the home side, however.

Celtic had started brightly, but then a lapse of concentration from Ambrose allowed Matri to give Juve a third-minute lead. 

The hosts then rallied after the goal and Buffon had to be alert to stop a fiercely-drilled Wanyama strike from 25 yards.

The SPL leaders continued to press forward and Commons was inches away from an audacious equaliser in the 28th minute when his overhead kick from Mikael Lustig’s cross bounced just wide with Buffon beaten.