Celtic bounced back from going a goal down to St Johnstone to win 3-1 at McDiarmid Park, as two stunning strikes from Callum McGregor and Matt O'Riley, as well as a late James Forrest goal spared their blushes in Perthshire.

The visitors had their first chance in the opening minute through Kyogo Furuhashi, who blasted his shot over the bar following a good pick-out from Luis Palma. Yang Hyun-jun then found O'Riley in the box a few minutes later, but the Denmark international could not properly connect with the chance. Celtic then had the ball in the net through David Turnbull, the goal being chopped off due to Yang's offside involvement in the lead-up. The same player would force a good save from Dimitar Mitov, as Brendan Rodgers' side continued to turn the screw for an opener. It would be the home side who would open the scoring through Diallang Jaiyesimi, who managed to force the ball over the line following a collective defensive calamity from O'Riley, Greg Taylor and Joe Hart in goals.

The home side went in ahead at half-time, whilst Celtic were greeted by boos from the travelling support for their first-half display. Following the restart, Yang was replaced by Mikey Johnston on the wing, as Rodgers' side chased for an equaliser in the second half. For all of their possession, chances were hard to come by for the opening 20, though that would change through their captain Callum McGregor, whose thunderbolt from outside the box levelled the game as a contest. They would then get themselves in front with another immense strike - this time from O'Riley - as they turned the game on its head completely.

As the Saints pushed forward for a winner they were caught by a lightning break and Forrest put the result beyond doubt to make sure all three points were on their way back to Glasgow.

With all of that being said, what did The Celtic Way make of proceedings in Perthshire? Our writers have their say...

Celtic get away with it... just

Celtic are very clearly not at their dynamic best at present. Despite occurring only three games ago, Celtic’s best 90-minute showing against Aberdeen feels like a lifetime ago. Fortunately for Rodgers and his staff, the players showed enough in the second half to turn the game on its head, including two wonder strikes from midfield duo McGregor and O’Riley. Regardless of this, there has to be a marked improvement in performance levels going forward, as they are teetering at the moment in games. Celtic have the individual quality to get past teams like St Johnstone – as was the case in the game – but their overall performance was nothing to shout about. With Hibs making the trip to Celtic Park on Wednesday, it will be a step up in terms of the quality of opposition for Rodgers’ side to contend with, so improvements are needed across the board.

Ryan McGinlay

Celtic wriggle off the hook with a little bit of CalMagic.

What a time the inspirational skipper chose to lash home his first goal of the campaign. The skipper smashed a beauty on the half volley on 67 minutes to level home the scores in Perth and there was only likely to be one winner after that. How Celtic needed that piece of magic to dig them out of a hole they were needlessly burrowing their way into at McDiarmid Park. The Scotland midfielder took the game by the scruff of the neck in the final quarter as Celtic chased an equaliser. He duly came up trumps with his screamer and spurred his side on to what was a deserved victory in the end. O'Riley then followed his captain's lead by hammering an unstoppable shot into the top corner with 11 minutes left on the clock for what turned out to be the decisive goal in the contest. However, the nature and complexion of the game all turned on McGregor's moment of quality. 

Tony Haggerty

A change of Hart...

Hart has been a wonderful servant for Celtic since he arrived and nobody can ever deny him that. However, the former Manchester City and England number one is certainly not enjoying his best spell between the sticks for his club right now. Hart alongside O'Riley looked totally culpable for the concession of the goal that led to the hosts taking the lead in this outing. Hart's reluctance to come from his line and be commanding in his penalty area almost cost his team once again. The shot-stopper flapped hopelessly as he got nowhere near punching the ball clear or claiming it with both hands before it was bundled into the net by the Saints. This latest mistake came hot on the heels of his poor attempt to prevent Motherwell's Jon Obika from snatching a last-gasp equaliser at Celtic Park last weekend and the 36-year-old is in real danger of becoming a total liability as he continues to lose bread-and-butter goals from set pieces. A new goalkeeper has to be at the top of Celtic's transfer shopping and wish list come January.

Tony Haggerty

The turmoil for Turnbull

The Celtic midfielder has a twin target for club and country to aim for now.  The 24-year-old is still hopeful of earning a new deal with Celtic as his contract continues to tick down while he will also be looking to force his way into Steve Clarke's international plans when the Scots head to Germany next summer for the Euros. Whilst Turnbull looked one of the more likely players to be the one to spark Celtic into life in truth a lot of the midfield play was slow, ponderous and laboured. He was surprisingly substituted for Oh on 58 minutes when it could easily have been O'Riley at that point in proceedings. The ex-Motherwell midfielder certainly won't need told that he needs to produce a lot more if he is to extend his spell at Parkhead as well as book a seat on the flight to Germany come June. 

Tony Haggerty

Too much pressure on Palma?

After an eight-day lay-off following the Motherwell game, Palma returned to the side following his suspension in the Champions League. Despite only being at the club for a matter of months, there already seems to be a reliance – potentially an overreliance – on looking to the Honduras international for a spark on the left wing. He looked like a man on a mission early doors - leaving Ryan McGowan in his wake a couple of times – in turn getting his marker in the referee’s book as a result. Unfortunately for the winger, his early promise shown in the game began to wane as the first half went on because the team as a whole’s tempo lowered. He certainly was the better of the two starting widemen today, as Yang was hooked off at half-time due to a poor showing in Perthshire. He is going to be a major player in the weeks and months to come for the club. Hopefully, the injury he picked up at the end isn’t too serious, ahead of some tough upcoming fixtures.

Ryan McGinlay