SPAGHETTI HOOPS

THE famous pasta sauce in these parts might be sensational but a battling point tasted pretty sweet for Celtic yesterday.

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The Hoops surrendered a two-goal lead but getting out of Bologna with a Europa League point was heroic after battling with 10 men for an hour.

Reo Hatate blasted Celts into an early lead — but was then sent off for two mindless yellow cards in the space of three minutes.

Auston Trusty poached a second but Martin O'Neill's Bhoys had to withstand a second-half battering.

The Serie A outfit - led by Scotland ace Lewis Ferguson - clawed back the deficit but the Hoops managed to hang on to give them a superb chance of reaching the knockout stages.

It was a wild night - but some result in the end.

Celts got off to a dream start as home keeper Lukasz Skorupski had a nightmare on his return after two months out.

The Pole shanked his pass straight to Daizen Maeda, who squared for Hatate to bury after just five minutes.

The goalscorer turned sinner, though, with two needless bookings to get himself sent off, firstly for tangling with Ferguson and then for a clip on Juan Miranda’ heel.

The Hoops seriously had to dig into keep Bologna at bay — but then stunned the hosts with a second goal just before halftime when Trusty tucked away after Arne Engels flicked on Kieran Tierney’s corner.

It was a total backs-to-the-wall job after the break. The chances piled up, with Benjamin Dominguez hitting the bar and Kasper Schmeichel making several saves before the Dane was breached just before the hour when Thijs Dallinga nodded home from close range.

They were hit again when Jonathan Rowe whipped past a stationary Schmeichel from the edge of the box.