CELTIC manager Martin O'Neill praised his players for digging out a result after an unfamiliar-looking Celtic side saw off Dundee in the Scottish Cup fifth round after extra time.
The home side fell behind shortly after the break following Ethan Hamilton's sensational strike before rescuing the tie with virtually the last kick of normal time through debutant Junior Adamu.
Shellshocked Dundee, who were on the brink of a first win at Celtic Park for 25 years, then fell behind early in extra time through Sebastian Tounekti's fine effort.
The Hoops saw the game out to secure a place in tonight's draw for the quarter-finals, with O'Neill impressed with his side's resilience.
"It was great to win in the manner in which we did," the Co. Derry native told Celtic TV afterwards.
Dundee shock hosts
The manager rolled the dice and made four changes to his starting line-up from last Sunday's 2-0 league win over Falkirk, with forward Joel Mvuka handed a debut and goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo making just his fifth appearance of the season.
Paulo Bernardo made a rare start while Tomáš Čvančara continued up front following his arrival on loan from Antalyaspor.
There was no place in the match day squad for Kasper Schmeichel, Daizen Maeda and Kelechi Iheanacho, while top scorer Benjamin Nygren started on the bench.
In front of a relatively sparse home crowd after the Celtic Fans Collective urged supporters to boycott the game in protest at the board, Dundee gave their hosts a scare when they struck the post early on.
Čvančara and Kieran Tierney tested Jon McCracken at the other end, while Luke Graham steered a ball agonisingly wide of the post for the visitors.
After a relatively uneventful first half, the second period began with a bang as the visitors, 10th in the Scottish Premiership, took the lead through a fine effort.
After Hyunjun Yang dispossessed the marauding Cameron Congreve, Hamilton picked up the loose ball 40 yards from goal, slalomed through the Celtic defence and drove the ball into the top corner from just outside the box.
New arrival Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, a three-time FA Cup winner with Arsenal, may have been wondering what he'd signed up for as the English Premier League winner watched on following his unveiling before the game.
Tierney, one of the few to impress as Celtic toiled to get back into the game, drew a great save from McCracken before clearing Tony Yogane's powerful drive off the line at the other end.
With almost a minute more played of the recommended five, Dundee were on the brink of a famous victory and a place in the hat for the quarter-finals.
However, the Hoops rescued the tie with a lovely bit of skill, Tounekti jinking his way into the box before passing to fellow substitute Adamu, who cleverly backheeled the ball into the net.
Dundee were clearly shellshocked while the late goal reinvigorated the hosts.
Barely had extra time begun when Tounekti, who has at times flattered to deceive this season, played a neat give-and-go with Luke McCowan before driving the ball low into the net.
Rejuvenated Celtic continued to press for a third, with Nygren twice going close to extending the lead but the hosts ultimately did enough to book their place in the last eight.
'Drive and determination'
An extra 30 minutes was the last thing Celtic would have wanted after Wednesday's league visit to Aberdeen was postponed and there is a two-legged Europa League play-off against Stuttgart on the horizon.
However, O'Neill said the manner of the win gave him confidence that his players could dig in and continue their fine run under his watch, which has saw them lose just one of 18 games across his two caretaker spells this season.
"The team showed a drive and a determination when all seemed lost," O'Neill told Celtic TV.
"It was great to win in the manner in which we did.
"We get that late, late goal and then we score almost immediately at the start of extra time and we saw it through at the end.
"The players deserve enormous credit for digging that out."
He added: "We've got a big game midweek now coming up and it's really nice still to be in the competition.
"I know extra games might catch up with us but we're on this bit of a run — let's continue it while it lasts."
The games continue to come thick and fast for Celtic, with league games against bottom club Livingston on Wednesday at home and second-bottom Kilmarnock on Sunday at Rugby Park.
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