Celtic keeper blames himself for exit

Goalkeeper Artur Boruc blames himself for the goal which knocked Celtic out of the Champions League.

A solitary third minute goal from Xavi saw Barcelona progress to the last eight at the Nou Camp, after the Catalan club went in to the match leading 3-2 from the first-leg.

The Poland international keeper pulled off a string of saves to prevent the visitors suffering a more comprehensive beating, but after the match he insisted he should not have let in the crucial early goal.

He said: "We lost 1-0 and I should have done better. I wasn't good enough at the goal and the five stops don't matter.

"I don't know if Barcelona will win the Champions League. We're not there so I don't care."

Manager Gordon Strachan compared the challenge of toppling Barcelona to climbing Everest in his pre-match news conference and Celtic's hopes of reaching the summit were effectively dashed almost as soon as the game started.

Defender Gary Caldwell, however, believes Boruc should not be too hard on himself.

He said: "Artur made a couple of stops. It was disappointing but it doesn't matter whose fault it is.

"It was disappointing the way we played in the first half. We stood off them and let them dictate.

"Last year AC Milan beat us and went on to win it and on form, Barca are as good as anyone.

"They may not be the best at the back but coming forward they are special."

Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard praised Celtic for their improvement after such a horrific start to the game.

He said: "We started the game very well and scored a goal which was important.

"It was a beautiful goal from Xavi and he is an important player for us.

"After that Celtic came back and played with confidence and gave us a difficult time."

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