Christie’s priceless lots

Wonder Bhoy collects award and looks to knock down Killie

champions failed to deal with a long ball.

Johnson said: like a win.

“We always said it might be scrappy and we put them under pressure in the second half and they started kicking it out a bit.

“I think we got them a bit rattled.

“We just said stay in the game, keep it 1-0 and then when we get a chance just take it. And I took it.

“I had nothing to aim for really, I literally had to smash it across goal and find the bottom corner. I found the post and gave Craig Gordon no chance.”

Johnson, whose team faces Hearts at Tynecastle on Sunday, added: “To put the Livingston defeat right and come back and get a point against Celtic when many would have thought we wouldn’t get any, it’s something to build from and take it into the next five or six games.” “It felt

Ryan Christie has waited too long for his chance at Celtic to take his sparkling run of form for granted.

Christie collected the Ladbrokes Premiership player-of-the-month award for November after taking his recent tally to six in nine Celtic matches when scoring the opener in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw at Motherwell.

The 23-year-old has had to be patient since signing for Celtic in September Rangers defender Gareth McAuley has told his team-mates they must learn lessons from their midweek defeat by Aberdeen and show the character to bounce back immediately.

A 1-0 home defeat ensured Rangers were knocked off top spot in the Ladbrokes Premiership 2015 – spending almost two years on loan, firstly back at Inverness and then with Aberdeen.

Hard work proved the antidote to any frustration over sitting on the sidelines and that enabled him to hit the ground running when the opportunity presented itself in the Betfred League Cup semi-final.

He scored a spectacular goal and had a hand in both the other goals against Hearts and has never looked back since.

Christie has started twice after less than four days at the summit.

Steven Gerrard told his men they had to improve their discipline – and then saw Alfredo Morelos receive his third red card of the season, although the first was later downgraded to yellow.

Rangers found no way back from Scott McKenna’s seventhminute goal, even after for Scotland and shone in both games and he also netted the League Cup final winner against the Dons.

But the new-found adulation will not go to Christie’s head.

“It’s my job as an attacking midfielder,” he said. “The manager wants goals from all areas of the park and even from midfield at this club you need to carry a goal threat.

“I’m happy that I’m doing that just now and long may it continue.

“The boys I am playing Aberdeen striker Sam Cosgrove received the night’s first red card.

Now Rangers must wait until Sunday to face a Dundee side lifted by Kenny Miller’s hat-trick in a 4-0 win over Hamilton.

Asked about his side’s character, McAuley said: “That is what this football club is about. It has been talked about what we have with, it’s easy to feed the ball to them and let them score too.

“Obviously the past couple of months show how quickly football can change but at the same time I know how it can turn the other way.

“I need to keep working as hard as ever and hopefully it will continue.”

Another example of how quickly football can change is the form of Kilmarnock, who are Celtic’s opponents tomorrow.

They were bottom of the to do if we want to go and challenge and be at the top of the league and do something, win something. You have to move on quickly, be as positive as you can and make sure you take everything on board and learn your lessons.”

On his feelings after their first home defeat of the season, the Northern Ireland international said: “It Premiership when Steve Clarke was appointed manager in mid-October last year but went on to seal a record points total and now travel to Parkhead top of the table following their midweek victory over Livingston and setbacks for Celtic and Rangers.

But Christie says talk of Killie winning the league is premature as he focuses on a run of games before the winter break.

“It’s too early said. “

“It’s just to the say,” he start of is disappointment, it’s frustration and it’s trying to find answers among ourselves.

“We let ourselves down and we let our standards slip all over the park really from where we have been and we only have ourselves to blame.

“We want to get our teeth into the game at the weekend.

“The manager has December and there’s such a big run of games for everybody up until the break. Once the break comes, then you can start talking about it

“Obviously they are playing very, very well and their manager is doing a fantastic job. But we want to be top of the league as long as we can so we will be looking to win on Saturday.

“We know Saturday is a big game and hopefully we can get over that and put a run together towards the break.” come in and said what he’s needed to say. I think we all knew we had let our standards slip and that is personally as individuals where we need to look at ourselves and sort that out.

“It is important we move forward and important we go and put on a performance on Sunday, and build again.”

GREEN LIGHT: Ryan Christie has been in fine form both domestically and internationally