Despite dominating for large periods and opening the scoring through Lars Stindl, Moussa Dembélé's penalty earned Celtic a 1-1 draw against Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Stindl opens the scoring
There was nothing in the way of clear-cut chances at either end in the early exchanges at Borussia-Park, with 2500 Scots passionately willing their team on in one corner. It wasn't easy for both teams or fans to get going, as Celtic's decision to go long rarely trouble the hosts. Schubert's side threatened yet rarely made it through to Craig Gordon.
The first real chance, unsurprisingly given the way things were going, went Gladbach's way. A superb through ball cut Celtic open and saw Tobias Strobl the man bursting through, with Gordon's legs required to keep the scores level. As Lars Stindl tried to force home the rebound, Manuel de Sousa crossed his path and, accidently, held him up.
Scott Sinclair took inspiration from that chance and curled one goalward from 20 yards after the ball had found him on the edge of the area. His effort looked like it was certain to find the top corner, only to see it come back off the inside of the post with Yann Sommer watching on as it bounced away behind him.
That proved to be Celtic's highlight of the half, and Gladbach made their pressure pay to take the lead. A great pass into the right-hand channel found Thorgan Hazard sneaking in behind Emilio Izaguirre, and he produced a fine cross onto the penalty spot. Stindl came steaming in and rifled a volley past the helpless Gordon in style.
The visitors tried their utmost to force an equaliser before the break but found the Foals' defence, especially Jannik Vestergaard, in a defiant mood.
Dembélé dashes Gladbach hopes
With neither side making any alterations at half time, it was a similar start to the second half that the first ended with. There was early promise as both sides came forward in search of adding to the scoreline, yet misunderstandings and misplaced passes cut short any moves in their infancy.
Gladbach always looked dangerous when coming forward, and another fine move saw them earn two chances in quick succession.
The first fell after more incisive passing saw Fabian Johnson break through but the ball got caught under his feet and Gordon was able to save his poked shot. Christoph Kramer was more robust with the second, but the Celtic stopper beat away his strong effort. Gordon was most certainly keeping his side in with a shout.
When Gordon couldn't reach the goal-bound Gladbach efforts, the bar was struck. Strobl was able to drift forward and for the second time saw himself in a promising position. This time he flicked an inventive pass into Stindl to square for André Hahn, though the latter's first-time effort came back off the crossbar.
Celtic took heart from a well-worked move that saw Dembélé denied by a smart Sommer save, and earned a penalty not long later. Julian Korb was the guilty party as he laid hands on the Frenchman inside the area and was dismissed for preventing a goalscoring opportunity. Dembélé stepped up, kept his cool and sent Sommer the wrong way.
With the scores level, it was truly anyone's game. Hahn and the newly-introduced Raffael both had chances but failed to find the target when it mattered most. However, Callum McGregor would have the best opportunity of the lot. Some tidy work on the edge of the box saw Stuart Armstrong slip him in, but McGregor's finish slid just past the post.
Neither side could find a dramatic winner in the final stages despite their best efforts, as both sides will feel like a draw does their hopes no favours. The Scottish champions missed the chance to overtake their opponents, while any chance of Gladbach leapfrogging Manchester City now rest on their upcoming home game with the Citizens.