WAS it football Celtic played in the San Siro, or snakes & ladders?

It's pretty cruel to feel on the brink of something special only to slither all the way back to the start. European football has given Ronny Deila and Celtic a rollercoaster ride but after 14 games it's over. In consecutive ties they will go from playing Inter Milan in February to some of the plankton that swims in and out of the UEFA competitions in the height of summer.
That Celtic produced their most mature and persuasive European performance since he took over, with an unjust outcome as far as they were concerned, created a yearning
for more.
They must wait. It will be another five months before Celtic are in Europe, and some of the team which turned out in Italy aren't likely to still be around. Deila comes across as a restless, insatiable sort. He demands energy and graft from his players and cannot be accused of being a slacker himself.
Celtic's defeat - an early red card, a long act of organised resilience, falling at the death to a terrific late goal - created an environment of uncritical sympathy around their performance. Deila will show his mettle if he remains dispassionate and clear-headed about what was good and what must improve if Celtic are to do more in Europe.
There is much to like about new or emerging figures like Stuart Armstrong, Gary Mackay-Steven, Nir Bitton and Craig Gordon, and there was none of the chaotic defending and jitters which had been evident in earlier defeats against Legia Warsaw, Maribor, Red Bull Salzburg and Dinamo Zagreb. They were not overrun or embarrassed in the San Siro, far from it.
But they have not won in their last five Europa League games and questions about whether or not Virgil van Dijk deserved his ruinous pair of yellow cards must be accompanied by acceptance that the side seemed too passive and restrained in an attacking sense. They always needed a goal to knock out a very average Inter Milan side and never really looked like
getting one.
Deila has been an unequivocal evangelist for attacking, pressing football but his substitutions were curious, even in the context of playing from the 36th minute with 10 men in a formidable arena. Mackay-Steven made an exuberant start, creating a great early chance for himself, but was taken off to let Efe Ambrose replace Van Dijk in the back four. Then James Forrest came on for John Guidetti while Kris Commons, a more likely scorer, had to wait another 20 minutes for his own introduction.
Fate and Van Dijk's naivety were against Celtic but they will not be easily free themselves from a nagging suspicion that they could have had more of a go at Inter. The Italians failed to hammer home the advantage of a playing with an extra man. Only through Fredy Guarin's thunderous 87th-minute shot did they shake Celtic off. That denied Celtic only their fourth clean sheet in 14 European games. They have taken a few sore defeats along the way yet in the San Siro, of all places, they hung in despite the loss of the man many regard as their best, or most valuable, asset. It was another harrowing night for Van Dijk in Europe.
He was booked for a needlessly clumsy tackle which won the ball but sent Rodrigo Palacio crashing down, the sort of challenge which some referees will allow to pass and others will punish with a caution. Minutes later he got himself in a mess and was all over Mauro Icardi: another booking and a red card. Van Dijk remains a commanding figure in Scottish football who can look diminished and ordinary when he faces a step up in class.
Celtic generally defended admirably without him, which at least offers encouragement if - as seems likely -
he leaves in the summer. Given that Jason Denayer will return to his parent club, Manchester City, Deila will probably have to find a new pair of cornerstones for a team which otherwise has plenty of promise. Guidetti's expected departure will leave them looking for another centre-forward, too.
The manager has said it often enough: neither he nor Celtic were ready for the European qualifiers this season. He'll have more time to prepare, and a more settled squad, when they come around again this summer. Armstrong and Mackay-Steven have immediately looked at home in green-and-white and Stefan Johansen and Bitton have grown in influence through the campaign. Gordon has been exceptional. The base is there. Celtic have been a work in progress in the early months of Deila's reign and the team which started Milan had only three players who also started the first European tie in Reykjavik just seven months ago: Van Dijk, Izaguirre and Johansen.
Europe threatened to expose Deila in the autumn and the defeats to Legia Warsaw and Maribor put a handbrake on the early enthusiasm towards him from supporters. He has put that behind him and even after a modest set of Europa League group results the two ties against Inter offered excitement and drama, allowing Celtic to feel they were back in the big time. Only the Champions League can authentically deliver that.
Right now, Celtic looked better equipped to get in among the elite than they did six months ago.