WITH one sweep of his right foot, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain became an instant hit with the Celtic fans at Parkhead last night.
Two points were on the verge of disappearing as the champions toiled to get the upper hand against the Premiership’s basement club Livingston.
The scoreline was stalemated at 1-1 after Marcelo Saracchi’s whizzbang first-half screamer had been nullified by a Robbie Muirhead penalty-kick after the turnaround.
With the game ebbing away, Martin O’Neill threw on new Bhoy Oxlade-Chamberlain, who just signed as a free agent on Friday, in a frantic effort to turn things around.
TAKE AIM…Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain curls his effort towards the Livingston goal.
FIRE…Livi keeper Jerome Prior stretches, but Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain already knows it’s a matchwinner.
CELEBRATIONS…Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain races away as the ball nestles in the net.
The 32-year-old former England international midfielder duly responded 12 minutes later with a delightful curling effort from the edge of the box that swept low into the Livi net to ensure three points would be added to the champions’ tally as they play catch up with leaders Hearts.
The Hoops are six points adrift with a game in hand and have yet to play the Edinburgh outfit in Glasgow for a second time.
A beaming Oxlade-Chamberlain, after playing in his first competitive game since turning out for Besiktas in May last year, said: “Those are the things you dream of.
“To be at this age, late on in my career, moments like that are why you play the game.
“You never get bored of stuff like that. I’m just delighted that the club has given me the chance to be back on the pitch.”
The one-time Arsenal and Liverpool hero, speaking to Celtic TV, added: “They’ve put faith in me to have moments like that.
“That’s my job, to try and add a bit of quality like that.
“It was great character from the boys, they stayed focused all the way through the game and we got the job done.”
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