Celtic concedes late in 2-2 draw with surprise Scottish leader Hearts

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This article was published 25/01/2026 (251 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

EDINBURGH, Scotland (AP) — Celtic missed its chance to close the gap on Heart of Midlothian on Sunday after conceding late to draw 2-2 with the Scottish Premiership leader.

Claudio Braga’s 87th-minute goal at Tynecastle Park leveled the game and kept first-place Hearts six points clear of the defending champion.

But the draw saw Rangers move up to second and within four points of Hearts with a 3-0 win against Dundee.

Hearts is the surprise leader in Scotland in a league that has long been dominated by Celtic and Rangers.

Celtic has lost two managers already this term — following the departure of Brendan Rodgers and the dismissal of Wilfried Nancy — and is being led by club icon Martin O’Neill on an interim basis for the second time this season.

Yet it remains in contention at the top and looked to pick up a vital win at Hearts when Yang Hyun-jun opened up a 2-1 lead in the 62nd.

But the visitors went down to 10 men when Auston Trusty was sent off 15 minutes later.

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Hearts eventually made the numerical advantage count with Braga’s equalizer.

Celtic had taken an early lead through Benjamin Nygren, but Stuart Findlay made it 1-1 just after halftime.

James Tavernier, Danilo and Djeidi Gassama struck in Rangers’ win against Dundee at Ibrox, with two of those goals coming in time added on.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer