Brown off as Celtic beaten by Barcelona
FORMER Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas earned Barcelona a 1-0 away win at 10-man Celtic last night.
The Bhoys had skipper Scott Brown sent off for kicking striker Neymar’s arm while on the ground midway through the second half, but managed to hold the Catalan giants at bay until Fabregas headed in Alex Sanchez’s cross on 75 minutes.
The defeat was the first Celtic have suffered at home in a Champions League group match since 2004 and leaves them bottom of Group H, after AC Milan and Ajax shared the points in a 1-1 draw.
Stefano Denswil’s 90th-minute strike had seemingly earned Ajax victory, but former Manchester City striker Mario Balotelli held his nerve to convert a 94th-minute penalty and rescue a precious point.
Last season’s runners-up Borussia Dortmund, in the same group as Arsenal, beat Marseille 3-0 with Robert Lewandowski scoring either side of Marco Reus’s strike.
Schalke are top of Group E with Julian Draxler’s goal enough to see off Basel, while in Group G Atletico Madrid came from behind to beat FC Porto 2-1.
Jackson Martinez had given the 2004 winners a first-half lead, but Diego Godin levelled after the break before Arda Turan hit the winner four minutes from time.
Elsewhere in that group, Zenit St Petersburg were held to a goalless draw by FK Austria Wien.