Hoops clinch a point

When Scott McDonald scored his 16th goal of the season after 24 minutes it looked like the Hoops would stretch the gap over the Ibrox men to five points.

However, United striker Francisco Sandaza scored twice at the start of the second half before Naylor volleyed the equaliser in from the edge of the box with nine minutes remaining.

Celtic took the lead in the 24th minute when McDonald had forced United skipper Lee Wilkie into conceding a corner and Paul Hartley's inswinging cross was inadvertently directed towards his own goal by lanky Tannadice defender Garry Kenneth.

Although Lukasz Zaluska blocked the ball, he could only parry it up in the air and the Hoops striker gratefully headed in from close range for his 16th of the season.

United looked more purposeful at the start of the second period and within two minutes they had drawn level. Warren Feeney won a corner off Darren O'Dea on the right-hand side of the box. When Paul Dixon whipped his cross into the front post, Sandaza flicked it past a posse of players inside the six-yard box and high into the net.

The goal changed the complexion of the game but when Kenneth brought Aiden McGeady crashing to the ground 30 yards from goal, the Parkhead side almost capitalised. Nakamura stepped up to deliver one of his trademark free-kicks and it was a relieved Kenneth - and United support - which watched the ball clear the bar by only a foot.

But in the 57th minute Sandaza dramatically grabbed his second as the Celtic defence went to sleep after a short free-kick from James Wesolowski sent Dixon racing down the right.

The United defender's cutback came across the Celtic box and it fell to the Spaniard, whose turn and shot made its way in at the far post past the diving Artur Boruc.

In the 81st minute, after Kenneth failed to clear properly, the unlikely figure of Naylor popped up at the edge of the box to send an unstoppable volley past Zaluska.