Thompson helps Celtic stay in touch

Celtic 2 Kilmarnock

Henrik Larsson shrugged off the disappointment of his penalty miss against Boavista in the Uefa Cup semi-final last Thursday to keep Celtic on the tails of Rangers in the duel for the Scottish Premier League title.

The Swede found the net for the 38th time this season as fourth-placed Kilmarnock were brushed aside at Parkhead yesterday. Rangers remain eight points ahead, but Celtic, perhaps crucially, still have two games in hand with one Old Firm derby still to come.

Larsson's first-half strike was small reward for a Celtic side who had dominated the game against a team making their own strides towards next season's Uefa Cup with an impressive run in which only Rangers have defeated them in the last dozen games.

However, Martin O'Neill knows that there is no longer even that kind of margin for error for his players if they want to win a third successive championship.

"This was a must-win game for us," said the Celtic manager. "We have to keep the title in our own hands and to do that we must keep winning from now until the end of the season." Celtic should have had things wrapped up by half-time as they put Kilmarnock under intense pressure. Alan Thompson, rightly praised later by O'Neill as the game's best player, thumped a venomous volley after 10 minutes that would have found the net but for the agile goalkeeping of Gordon Marshall.

However, Larsson did score 10 minutes later, with Thompson this time the creator. The midfielder threaded an angled pass over the Kilmarnock defence for John Hartson to gather, then cut back for Larsson to finish off with his right boot from 10 yards.

The pattern continued after the interval, with Thompson running the show with a series of teasing crosses. Larsson just failed to turn two of them into goals but Stilian Petrov sealed the success in the 73rd minute.

Celtic broke down the right, with Didier Agathe finding Paul Lambert, whose low cross was cleverly backheeled to Petrov, who swept a measured shot beyond Marshall from the edge of the box.

Goals: Larsson (20) 1-0, Petrov (73) 2-0.

Celtic (3-5-2): Douglas; Mjallby, Baldé, Valgaeren; Agathe (Maloney, 84), Lambert, Lennon , Petrov (Smith, 84), Thompson; Larsson, Hartson. Substitutes not used: Sanchez Broto (gk), McNamara, Crainey.

Kilmarnock (3-5-2): Marshall; Shields, Fulton, Innes; Fowler, Mahood, Locke, McDonald (McLaughlin, 50), Canero; McLaren (Boyd, 76), McSwegan. Substitutes not used: Stewart (gk), Dindeleux, Hay.

Referee: A Freeland.

Bookings: Celtic: Lennon. Kilmarnock: Locke, Canero, McDonald, McSwegan.

Man of the match: Thompson.

Attendance: 56,966.

* Rangers moved a step nearer to regaining the Scottish Premier League title after two goals from Ronald de Boer inspired them to a 4-1 win at Dundee United yesterday. The Dutchman scored from a volley from a Peter Lovenkrands cross after 11 minutes before setting up Shota Arveladze to head in a second seven minutes later. He then chipped the goalkeeper Paul Gallacher a minute before half-time, and in the 69th minute set up Arveladze to drive in the fourth goal.