Joe Hart: The Celtic number one breathed a sigh of relief when VAR intervened after Curtis Main thought he had put St Mirren ahead early on. The former England goalkeeper then produced a superb one-handed stop from Jonah Ayyunga that was heading for the top corner. He was a virtual spectator after the break but saved excellently from Alex Gogic to preserve the clean sheet. 8

Alistair Johnston: A composed, quick and strong individual who is also a terrific athlete. He really understands the role of inverted full-back and the Canadian internationalist loves the art of defending. He looks like he has settled into Scottish football immediately and will be a great asset for the club moving forward. 8

Carl Starfelt: Both he and his central defensive partner were involved in the build-up to the opening goal when they made their presence felt at a corner kick. The Swede had the first effort that was parried before Yuki Kobayashi cracked the ball off the post and Liel Abada profited to make it 1-0. He was a real handful to deal with in the opposition box as he proved to be a nuisance at set pieces. He dealt with the twin threat of Main and Ayunga sufficiently enough. He looked a lot more confident being deployed at right centre-back. 8

Yuki Kobayashi: Ange Postecoglou handed the Japanese left-sided central defender his debut for the Hoops in place of Cameron Carter-Vickers and all eyes were on him. He was denied a dream goal when he smashed a shot off the post following Starfelt's header but Abada was on hand to slam home the opener. Ayunga then tried to test him in a one-on-one situation and he snuffed out the danger with a textbook piece of rearguard action. He was in a gripping contest with the likes of Main and Ayunga all evening, especially aerially and as a small sample size enjoyed a comfortable first 90 minutes in a Hoops jersey. 8

Josip Juranovic: The Croatian gave the ball away and then crucially won the ball back in the lead-up to the third goal. He was full of running all evening despite playing in the unfamiliar left-back berth. He showed his physicality and strength against the Main and Ayunga and came up smiling. 7

Callum McGregor: The metronome. The man who makes his team tick and he is the fulcrum of the side. The likes of Hatate and O'Riley were able to roam forward at will and totally express themselves. The captain is such a reassuring presence who reads the game and every situation so well. 8

Reo Hatate: What an exquisite pass to send compatriot Kyogo Furuhashi through on goal and the striker did the rest. His assist was right out of the top drawer and weighted to perfection. It was a lovely piece of football. The midfielder drifted into space at will and broke the lines at all times and rarely wasted anything all evening. He really is a class act in the making and he put on a show. 8

Celtic Way:

Matt O'Riley: Came back into the first team in place of Aaron Mooy after being rotated for the past two matches. He ghosted into space and probed away in the engine room and always tried to make things happen in the final third. It was a consistent performance from the Danish under-21 internationalist. 7

Liel Abada: Restored to starting duty and should have won a penalty inside 60 seconds when he was tugged back by Charles Dunne in the box but referee Steven MacLean wasn't interested and neither was VAR. His moment duly arrived in 15 minutes when he hammered in Kobayahsi's rebound on the volley. It was the Israeli's 10th goal of the season which is a fantastic contribution to the cause. He faded a bit after the restart. 7

Kyogo Furuhashi: The talismanic striker was full of energy and running all evening as he chased, harried and shut down the visiting defenders at every opportunity. He never gave the Buddies' defence a minute's peace. The attacker produced a sublime finish to make it 2-0 when he brilliantly lobbed Trevor Carson on 36 minutes to claim number 17 for the season. He then made it 18 for the campaign with a trademark clinical run and low finish from Jota's set-up. His overall work rate and striker play are a joy to watch. 9

Jota: Another who looked like he was on it from the kick-off and easily had the beating of his marker down the left flank. He crashed an absolute sitter into the side-netting from close range when he really ought to have scored. He went through his repertoire of tricks and flicks. He laid the ball on a plate for Kyogo to claim his second goal of the evening after a brilliant three-man move. 8

Substitutes

James Forrest (Abada 69): He was denied a goal with his first touch and a fourth when a VAR decision went against Celtic for once on the night. 4

David Turnbull (O'Riley 70): Handed some more valuable game tie with a 20-minute cameo and drove home a low beauty of a howitzer from 25 yards to make it 4-0. 5

Aaron Mooy (Hatate 70): The Australian came on with 20 minutes to go when the game was done and dusted and the three points were well and truly in the bag. 4

Daizen Maeda (Kyogo 79): Japanese wide man came on for his compatriot with eleven minutes left on the clock.

Sead Haksabanovic (Jota 79): The returning Montenegrin was given the last eleven minutes to make an impact.

Substitutes not used: Scott Bain, Anthony Ralston, Stephen Welsh, Tomoki Iwata.