The patchy xG figures at Atalanta and Dortmund probably highlight how dire the Bundesliga side’s performance was in Germany, but Schmeichel prevented his role from being violated in Bergamo by making six saves.
However, the four-man defense in front of the Danish goalkeeper will rightly be at the forefront of the plaudits, particularly the centre-back pairing of Liam Scales and Auston Trusty.
In the absence of first choice Cameron Carter-Vickers, Scales and Trusty fought back resolutely making 24 clearances between them.
“Scales and Trusty were exceptional,” former Scotland striker James McFadden said on BBC Sportsound.
“Neither of us panicked. Atalanta asked a lot of questions and Celtic had the answers.”
Full-backs Alistair Johnston and Alex Valle, who were in the field for the injured Greg Taylor, also inspired.
Meanwhile, Adam Idah gave the team more appeal on the opposite side and Reo Hatate brought more strength and business in midfield.
With arguably their two toughest Champions League games behind them, Celtic can now look forward to back-to-back home games against RB Leipzig and Club Brugge with four problems already on the board.
“In many moments in that game, I felt the pressure was similar to the Dortmund game,” former Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart said on TNT Sports.
“Dortmund got out of control very quickly, but Celtic were able to deal with the chaos, win some great headers, have a bit of luck and some great saves from Schmeichel.
“As soon as the 70 minutes arrived, I felt that Atalanta were running out of concepts. Celtic as a whole, magnificent aim.”
