Benjamin Nygren targets perfect end to season to give Celtic title hope

Celtic midfielder Benjamin Nygren targeted a perfect end to the league season after he proved the difference in a tough trip to Falkirk.

The home side had several good opportunities in the first half of Wednesday’s clash but Nygren headed the opener two minutes before the break.

The goal proved enough for Celtic, although they needed an impressive late save from Kasper Schmeichel to deny Ethan Williams.

The result moved Celtic above Rangers on goal difference but they remain six points behind William Hill Premiership leaders Hearts.

The Jambos were beating St Mirren at the same time despite having Beni Baningime sent off early on – the second time they had won with 10 men in four days.

Nygren said of Celtic’s victory: “It was massive. We spoke about it before the game: we need to win every game now. That’s how it is.

“We still play both Hearts and Rangers again, so it’s still in our hands. We will do everything to turn it around.

“In the end, it’s about getting the three points. If you play a great game, you still get three points.

“We didn’t play our best game but we got the three points, and that’s the most important thing.”

The Swede, who took his Premiership goal tally to 10, said: “I can give Falkirk some credit. They played a good game, but I still think we should have done a better performance. But we didn’t. We still ran a lot of metres and did pretty well defensively.

“We all know that we need to put in stronger performances to win football games. That was not good enough. We cannot continue with performances like that, but we got the win and we’re very pleased with that.”