Jeff Stelling has made an interesting comparison between Celtic’s late goals and the Manchester United teams managed by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Celtic have started to build a habit of scoring right at the end of games in recent weeks. Junior Adamu, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Julian Araujo have all stepped up in stoppage time to grab points that looked to be slipping away. Those moments have kept Celtic right in the title race, even when performances have dipped during matches.

15th February 2026; Rugby Park, Kilmarnock, Scotland: Scottish Premiership Football, Kilmarnock versus Celtic; Julian Araujo of Celtic shoots and scores in the 97th minute to make it 3-2

Martin O’Neill himself has said they cannot keep relying on dramatic finishes. Celtic have left it late more than once, and too often they have made life harder with slow starts. Even so, they continue to dig in and produce something when it matters most.

Stelling said people used to say the same thing about Ferguson’s Manchester United. They were told it could not go on, but they kept scoring late goals until it simply became what they did.

He said: (talkSPORT), “As far as Celtic are concerned, even Martin O’Neill said, ‘you can’t go on like this’.

“Of course, we spoke about Hearts losing Shankland. Celtic have lost Engels, who is a massive player for them, for six weeks or so.

“I said, ‘They can’t keep doing it.’ But famously, Manchester United did keep doing it under Sir Alex in Fergie time.”

There is some background to that comparison. Celtic are missing Arne Engels for a few weeks, which affects how they control midfield. Hearts are dealing with the loss of Lawrence Shankland as well. Injuries are playing their part as the season tightens up.

The difference is Celtic are not controlling matches the way those United sides often did. They have had to fight back after slow starts. That means defenders are exposed and mistakes are punished even more.

Celticfc rugby park
15th February 2026; Rugby Park, Kilmarnock, Scotland: Scottish Premiership Football, Kilmarnock versus Celtic; Celtic players look dejected after Tyreece John Jules of Kilmarnock shoots and scores in the 21st minute to make it 1-0 to Kilmarnock

Still, when games stretch late on, pressure builds. Celtic throw men forward, full-backs push on, and the bench is used to add fresh legs. Keep the ball in the box long enough and something usually drops.

Stelling’s argument is clear. Many think it cannot keep happening. Football has shown before that sometimes it can.