Celtic end on winning note

First-half goals from Shaun Maloney and Aiden McGeady - either side of the red card shown to Guillermo Franco for raising his hand to Hoops defender Gary Caldwell - gave the home side a deserved interval lead, which they held with ease all the way to the final whistle.

Denied even the possibility of UEFA Cup football before the game began, Celtic Park was stripped of the usual excitement associated with Champions League nights, but they produced a fine display to earn their first win in Group E.

The home side started brightly, Maloney testing goalkeeper Sebastian Viera with a drive from the edge of the box.

It was the first inkling of what was to come from the Parkhead men, and in the 14th minute they took the lead after Shunsuke Nakamura sent Mark Wilson towards the byline. When the former Dundee United defender's cross had the sting taken out of it by Viera, Maloney had the easiest of tasks to head into an empty net.

The goal stung the Spaniards, and the Scottish champions had to survive a few minutes of intense pressure. But in the 21st minute, Celtic might have made it 2-0 when Maloney's wonderfully-crafted cross from the right just evaded Georgios Samaras - who had left the Villarreal defence in his wake.

In the 35th minute Villarreal were reduced to 10 men in bizarre circumstances when the linesman flagged to inform referee Claudio Circhetta that Franco had apparently struck Caldwell. The decision seemed harsh on the evidence of television.

The incident was missed by most inside Parkhead - but after protests by the visitors, which earned Edmilson a booking, the Mexican striker had to troop off.

In the first minute of injury time, McGeady picked the ball up just over the halfway line and drove towards the Villarreal goal. From the edge of the box, he drilled a left-footed shot past Viera and into the corner of the net - as easy as you like.

The visitors, though, should have pulled a goal back in the 70th minute when Kahveci raced clear of the Hoops defence - but to the delight of the Celtic fans, Boruc produced a fine block from the substitute's close-range drive.