SUB STANDARD IS BENCHMARK FOR CHAMPS

Replacements are proving vital in Celts' title quest

- BY CRAIG SWAN

TOMAS CVANCARA stepped off the bench to provide yet another pivotal point in Celtic's campaign.

In overall terms, manager Martin O'Neill has twice positively altered the direction of the squad's season.

But, match-to-match, it’s his Parkhead game-changers who are increasingly proving key to keeping the champions in firm contention to retain their Premiership title.

The evidence in recent weeks during O'Neill's second short-term spell at the helm has been stark.

Five times in the last six Premiership matches as Celtic have battled to stay on the heels of Hearts have his switches paid maximum and dramatic dividends.

When bottom-of-the-table Livingston arrived into Glasgow's East End in the middle of last month to kickoff the sequence, they looked set to take an unlikely point with the game locked at 1-1 ticking into stoppage-time.

O'Neill had thrust new signing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on with 12 minutes to go - and the ex-England international came up trumps with the winner in virtually the last kick of the contest.

Four days later, the champions were in massive trouble in Ayrshire trailing 2-0 to Kilmarnock at halftime after a torrid opening-period performance.

Sebastian Tounekti was among the switches made at the interval by O'Neill and the Tunisian star's top-corner thunderbolt from 25 yards set the wheels in motion for a dramatic 3-2 success which was sealed by Julian Araujo’ last-gasp winner.