Despite Celtic's difficult night against Rangers, Egypt international Haitham Hassan managed to emerge as one of the few positive stories for his team after producing an impressive performance from the bench.

Celtic were knocked out of the Scottish League Cup after suffering a 3-0 defeat to Rangers at Ibrox, but Hassan's second-half display attracted attention from several Scottish media outlets, with some questioning why the Egyptian winger did not start the game.

Hassan began the derby on the bench after starting several previous matches for Celtic. He was introduced at the beginning of the second half, replacing Sebastian Tounekti as Celtic looked for a way back into the game.

Strong Impact

Hassan entered the match with Celtic already behind and immediately tried to give his team more speed and attacking movement.

The Egyptian winger was active on the flank, made several forward runs and tried to create danger around the Rangers penalty area despite Celtic struggling to control the game.

Hassan came close to scoring in the 71st minute when he fired a powerful effort that went just wide of the goal.

Rangers had taken the lead in the first half through Dan Neil, who scored with a shot from outside the penalty area.

Kevin Kelsy then doubled Rangers' advantage in the second half after receiving a cross from Neil, before Neil scored his second goal of the match in the 75th minute to make it 3-0.

Hassan continued trying to make an impact even after the third goal, but Celtic were unable to find a way back into the contest.

The final minutes also included a heated moment involving the Egyptian winger, who was involved in an exchange with a Rangers player following a challenge. Both players were shown yellow cards.

The match ended with Rangers winning 3-0 and securing a place in the semi-finals, while Celtic were eliminated from the competition.

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Scottish Praise

Although Celtic struggled as a team, Hassan's individual performance received positive reviews from the Scottish media.

Scottish outlet "67 Hail Hail" gave Hassan a rating of 7 out of 10, the highest among Celtic players despite the fact that he only played the second half.

His performance also raised questions about the decision to leave him on the bench at the start of the match.

Other reports highlighted his speed, direct attacking runs and willingness to move the ball forward during a difficult period for Celtic.

"Glasgow World" gave Hassan a rating of 5 out of 10, placing him among Celtic's highest-rated players on the night.

The outlet noted that the Egyptian winger tried to move forward whenever possible and made promising attacking runs, although his teammates did not always make full use of his movement.

Other Scottish reports also placed Hassan among Celtic's better performers and suggested that his second-half display strengthened his case for more starts in the coming matches.

That praise could be important for the Egyptian winger as he continues to compete for a regular place in Celtic's starting lineup.

Despite Celtic's heavy defeat, Hassan left Ibrox with his reputation improved after needing only 45 minutes to catch the attention of the Scottish media.

He will now look to build on that performance as Celtic prepare to face Ferencvaros in the Europa League before meeting Rangers again, this time in the Scottish league.