'Celtic created plenty of chances' - Olayinka insists Red Star held their own in stalemate

Red Star Belgrade's Nigeria international Peter Olayinka has dismissed suggestions that his side should have taken all three points in their Europa League opener against Celtic, insisting the contest was evenly matched.

The game took place on Wednesday at the iconic Rajko Mitic Stadium in Belgrade, with Celtic's marquee signing Kelechi Iheanacho and Olayinka in action.

Both teams were looking to bounce back after unexpected Champions League exits, with Celtic losing to Kiarat Almaty on penalties while Red Star Belgrade were eliminated by Pafos.

Hoops boss Brendan Rodgers freshened his attack at halftime with the introduction of Iheanacho and the Nigerian delivered ten minutes into the second half when he opened the scoring.

At 65 minutes, Red Star Belgrade responded with Marko Arnautovic equalizing after he was fed by Nigerian cerntre-back Franklin Tebo Uchenna.

Olayinka insisted that  the Scottish champions were no pushovers despite Red Star's promising spells in the game.

"It was a really balanced game, you know, and I wouldn’t go as far as saying it was one we could have won comfortably," Olayinka told Flashscore.

"Celtic created plenty of chances, but we also had our own opportunities to score. In the end, the match finished level, which I feel was a fair outcome.

"Overall, it was a 50-50 contest, and the positive is that we can still improve and grow stronger."

Red Star travel to Portugal to face FC Porto at the Estádio do Dragão on October 2 in their next Europa League outing, while Celtic will host Braga at Celtic Park.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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