Yang Hyun-jun struck the decisive goal as Celtic recovered from a deficit to secure a 2-1 victory over an impressive St Mirren team. St Mirren looked set to move to the top of the Premiership after Nikolas Agrafiotis converted a penalty midway through the opening half.
Liam Scales gave away the spot-kick with a handball, but redeemed himself by heading in an equaliser six minutes after half-time. Yang then completed a swift counterattack midway through the second period following effective pressing by Camilo Durán.
The result in Paisley gave the defending champions five victories from their opening five league fixtures and handed St Mirren their first Premiership loss. Martin O’Neill’s players were tested throughout by an energetic and creative Saints team that registered 19 attempts on goal.
O’Neill later expressed disappointment that Yang will be unavailable for several important matches. The 24-year-old is travelling to Japan for the Asian Games and will miss the midweek visit to St Johnstone, two meetings with Rangers and the Europa League opener against Ferencvaros.
“His absence will be a major loss because he is performing extremely well,” the manager said. “He ended this spell with an outstanding goal. He is in excellent form, tracks back willingly and is always prepared to do the demanding work.”
Rangers forward Ryan Naderi capitalised on a defensive mistake to score the only goal against Motherwell at Ibrox. However, the hosts are concerned that captain Lawrence Shankland could be sidelined for an extended period after sustaining a hamstring injury early in the match.
Naderi replaced Shankland in the eighth minute and scored four minutes later. He took the ball from Alex Paulsen when the Motherwell goalkeeper tried to dribble around him outside the penalty area, leaving the German striker with a straightforward finish into an empty net.
Motherwell controlled much of the possession and produced several opportunities, but Rangers carried the greater threat near goal and could have extended their advantage. Kim Min-su failed to convert a first-half penalty, while substitute and debutant Kevin Kelsy was among those who missed promising chances.
Rangers comfortably protected their narrow advantage during the closing stages to claim a third successive Premiership win.
Manager Derek McInnes said Shankland’s condition may be comparable to the hamstring problem that ruled him out for two months early in 2026. “He says it feels much like the injury he suffered at Hearts last January and that it is in the same area,” McInnes said. “We do not want to make assumptions, so he will undergo a scan on Monday.”
“He had no concerns before kick-off and cannot identify a particular incident that caused it; he simply felt the muscle tighten. It is unfortunate because he had been playing well, building momentum and enjoying the attacking football we have shown recently after such a long wait.”
Michael Forbes scored a stoppage-time equaliser for Dundee United against Falkirk, cancelling out Jacob Murrell’s fourth-minute opener at Tannadice. Elsewhere, Kilmarnock earned their first point of the campaign but remain without a Premiership victory following a goalless draw at Aberdeen. Aaron Tshibola received a second yellow card in the 83rd minute, although the home side could not break down the visitors after they were reduced to 10 players.
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