Celtic beaten by late strike
Strachan's side were denied a deserved draw late in the game
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Wednesday, 24, Oct 2007 10:52
Celtic face a tough task to qualify from their Champions League group following a 1-0 defeat to Benfica at the Estadio da Luz.
Oscar Cardozo scored the wining goal four minutes from time to deny Gordon Strachan's men a daw they had fought hard to achieve.
Both sides went close to breaking the deadlock before the break but a combination of poor finishing and good goalkeeping kept it scoreless.
Scott Brown went close twice for the visitors while Cardozo would have scored at the other end but he failed to make any contact with Leo's cross.
Konstantinos Katsouranis almost scored on the stroke of half-time but Artur Boruc made a full-length save to tip the ball over the bar.
In the second period Cardozo hit the woodwork twice in as many minutes; first hitting the bar following up a fierce shot that Boruc had parried into his path, before later seeing his curled effort hit the base of the post.
However the Paraguayan got his reward just before the final whistle, beating the offside trap and lobbing Boruc.
Elsewhere in the Champions League Real Madrid came from behind twice to beat Olympiakos 4-2 at the Bernabeu to remain top of group C.
AC Milan lead Celtic's group thanks to a comfortable 4-1 over Shakhtar Donetsk at the San Siro, Mark Gilardino and Clarence Seedorf both grabbed a brace in the victory.
Marseille are six points clear of Liverpool at the top of group A following a 1-1 draw with Porto. Mamadou Niang looked to have won the game for the French side before Lucho Gonzalez equalised from the spot with ten minutes remaining.
Rosenborg pulled off a surprise 2-0 win against Valencia to go second behind Chelsea in group B, while Werder Bremen rose to third in group C after a 2-1 win over Lazio.