SOCCER/UEFA Cup quarter final, first leg: Liverpool's Senegalese international striker El Hadji Diouf is likely to face severe punishment after spitting into the crowd near the end of last night's game.
The two teams have strong links off the pitch and the match was generally played in a marvellous spirit, both on the pitch and in the stands.
But five minutes from time Diouf ended up close to a section of Celtic fans, one of whom patted him on the head in a seemingly innocuous gesture.
Diouf reacted by spitting towards the fans, who were not impressed - one was arrested for his reaction.
Diouf was roundly booed by the home fans whenever he touched the ball before he was spared any further abuse by manager Gerard Houllier, who substituted him.
He was given a police escort down the players' tunnel.
European governing body UEFA are not likely to be as sympathetic.
Houllier didn't comment on the incident, preferring to concentrate on the result itself.
He said Emile Heskey's away goal could prove crucial to the outcome of the tie..
"Scoring a goal away from home is important. But it's just half-time. We didn't start the way we wanted to start but credit to the players - they came back with character," Houllier said.
Celtic counterpart Martin O'Neill lauded his side for what he termed a fantastic effort against one of the top sides in Europe - he was quick to remind anyone listening that Liverpool won the competition two years ago.
"Overall I was absolutely delighted with the commitment of the side. We're not out of this by a long shot. We're still in this tie," said O'Neill, who thought John Hartson was wrongly adjudged to have committed a foul in the lead-up to Liverpool's goal.
Despite Celtic boasting six wins in the eight European ties they have played without Henrik Larsson since he has been at the club, the nagging suspicion remains that if you stifle the Swede you nullify his side.
Much of the same criticism has been levelled at Liverpool recently at their over-reliance on Michael Owen. Owen may not have scored last night but, with his tireless efforts were pivotal to the draw.
