'My heartbeat was really high' - Iheanacho relives pressure penalty

"Anybody in my position would be scared of that moment."

Kelechi Iheanacho's calm persona belied heart-thumping fear amid the most intense pressure of reviving Celtic's title hopes.

The striker coolly slotted home a contentious penalty deep into added time at Fir Park to secure a crucial 3-2 victory over Motherwell.

It ensured Martin O'Neill's will win the Premiership title on Saturday if they beat Hearts – rather than having to triumph by three goals.

"You don't want to know what my heart was saying at that moment," said 29-year-old Iheanacho.

"My heartbeat was high. It was really high. I don't know about the fans but my heartbeat was really high.

"It was a pressure moment and I just needed to keep calm and focus and just put it in the back of the net. It was big pressure and a big moment so I'm happy we got through that.

"I think my team-mates fancied me to do that. It's one of the biggest moments in my career.

"The keeper was teasing me a bit but I didn't change my mind. I just kept my cool and went there."

Celtic have not topped the table since September but have now won six successive league games to turn up the pressure on long-time leaders Hearts.

Iheanacho said: "It will be a massive moment for the club. Since this season, Hearts has been one of the strongest teams in the league. It's going to be a very, very difficult game.

"It's a title challenge game. They're going to come out with everything to win the title. We need to be ready to face that.

"It's going to take for us to have this fighting spirit of winning trophies, fighting together as a team, working together as a team to win.

"We've had that all season, so we just take that in on Saturday. It's like a cup final, so we'll give everything."

[BBC]