Celtic 1 0 Hibs: Griffiths scores for first time against Hibs to claim points

Celtic's Scott Sinclair can't believe it as he somehow manages to hit the bar of Hibs goalkeeper Ofir Marciano from only a few yards out.

\It was a cruel blow for the Edinburgh side who, although finding themselves under intense pressure for much of the opening 45 minutes - Scott Sinclair hitting the bar early on for Celtic - fought their way back into the match and might have levelled things late on when John McGinn unleashed a shot which substitute goalkeeper Dorus de Vries just managed to touch round the post.

Only a stunning save from goalkeeper Ofir Marciano and dreadful finishing by Sinclair prevented Celtic taking the lead after just 14 minutes, the Israeli internationalist throwing himself to his right to claw away Griffiths' free-kick after Dylan McGeouch had tripped Callum McGregor only for the ball to spin into the path of Sinclair.

But somehow, with the goal gaping, he cracked his shot off the bar, the ball again dropping into the danger area where it evaded Celtic skipper Scott Brown before John McGinn eventually hooked it to safety.

Ex-Hibs striker Griffiths,scuffed a shot wide before Brandon Barker enjoyed Hibs first opening of the match, his pace taking him deep into the Celtic penalty area and one-on-one with goalkeeper Craig Gordon who came out on top as he stopped the on-loan Manchester City winger's shot with his legs. It was, though, just the sort of opportunity Hibs needed to take.

Hibs were the only top flight team Griffiths hadn't scored against but he put that right in the 27th minute - with a bit of a helping hand from former team-mate Hanlon. The Easter Road defender stooped to try to meet Tierney's cross, presumably with the intention of nodding it back to Marciano or out for a corner, but he didn't get enough on it and Griffiths pounced on the mistake, rolling the ball past Marciano to take a step closer to his 100th Celtic goal.

Griffiths; however cut a disconsolate figure only five minutes later when he was forced to limp from the pitch having seemingly suffered a calf injury. Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers took his time replacing him, a full three minutes elapsing before Moussa Dembele took to the pitch.

Gordon had come off second best on the stroke of half-time as he and Efe Ambrose went for a McGinn free-kick, the Celtic goalkeeper failing to return after the interval, giving a rare outing to de Vries.

Hibs had arrived in Glasgow knowing they were likely to find themselves doing most of the chasing and having done so in the first half they found themselves under pressure immediately after the restart, Sinclair denied a second goal by Marciano before a timely interception by Darren McGregor again halted the Celtic man.

The Capital club were beginning to enjoy more of the ball as the game passed the hour mark and looked comfortable in possession while the introduction of Simon Murray and his persistence had unsettled Celtic's back four. However, they found themselves unable to test de Vries until McGinn, who had scored twice on his last visit to Celtic Park, unleashed a powerful low shot which the goalkeeper, at full stretch, managed to push round the post.

But that was as close as it got for Hibs despite finishing the match strongly.

Celtic: Gordon (De Vries 46), Boyata,, Simunovic, Ajer, Tierney, Brown, Ntcham, Forrest (Eboue 71), C McGregor, Sinclair, Griffiths (Dembele 35)

Substitutes not used: Bitton, Gamboa, Edouard, Miller.

Hibs: Marciano, Ambrose, D McGregor, Hanlon, Stevenson, Boyle (S Murray 55), McGeouch, Slivka, McGinn, Barker, Shaw (Swanson 69).

Substitutes not used: Bain, Matulevicius, Rherras, Maclaren, Porteous.

Referee: Bobby Madden.