Dundee United boss Tam Courts believes his side were a poor penalty decision away from claiming their first win at Celtic Park in 29 years.
Courts watched on with pride as his outstanding United picked up a richly-deserved 1-1 draw thanks to an equaliser from derby hero Ian Harkes.
Celtic hit the bar three times but were regularly pinned back by the brave United attack.
United could and should have had a penalty as Nicky Clark appeared to be bundled over by Cameron Carter-Vickers.
They also came close to winning it late on as sub Louis Appere found space inside the Celtic box, only to fire an effort straight at Joe Hart.
“I’m delighted with the performance and really proud of the players,” said Courts.
“It’s a huge step forward in terms of the players self-belief and them believing in what we are doing.
“But it’s also tinged with frustrating. We could have had what appeared to be a stonewall penalty in the first half.
“That might have resulted in Celtic going down to ten men.
“Then at the end we had a gilt-edged opportunity to put the game beyond Celtic with one of the last kicks of the ball.”
Tam Courts praises ‘bravery’ of his Dundee United players
Courts knows his side could have claimed a historic victory.
But he is delighted with the way his side matched the Glasgow giants.
“I asked for bravery, a strong mentality and for the players to show their quality. They did all three in abundance.
“They were able to come here and control huge parts of the game and create numerous chances.
“We earned our right to ride our luck.
Keep pushing, lads💪🍊#UnitedTogether pic.twitter.com/nvUpBqhS7h
— Dundee United FC (@dundeeunitedfc) September 26, 2021
“I have watched multiple games at this stadium over the years.
“I’ve seen Celtic beat St Mirren 6-0 and the supporters almost suck the ball into the net.
“I know one end of the spectrum – what this team, the supporters and this stadium can do.
“But with a bit of bravery and trust in each other you can apply pressure and go toe-to-toe with Celtic like we did.”
