Questionable tackles apart, the game against Alloa threw up all the expected hurdles an away tie against lower-league opposition brings, not least a tight synthetic pitch and a home outfit with nothing to lose.

And Postecoglou said of his first Scottish Cup tie in charge of the Celts: “It was a challenge. I still thought we should have won more comfortably than we did, we missed some chances and we overplayed things a little bit in the first half in particular.

“It’s not easy on this pitch, we know that but, as I said, I thought we could have made our night a little bit more comfortable.

‘We understand it’s a cup competition and the most important thing is you get through to the next round and give yourselves an opportunity, that’s the main thing.’

“There were quite a few guys that got some game time tonight which was important for us because they hadn’t played in quite a while.

“From that point of view it was good that we did that and hopefully that helps us move forward.”

Giorgos Giakoumakis got the scoring underway in the 14^th minute with Abada adding the second just before the break.

The manager said of the Greek striker: “Obviously he didn’t play much in the first half of the season so it was good for him to start and good for him to score.

“He’ll get better, there are still parts of his game that he will improve on because he hasn’t played for quite a while, but as a striker it’s good that he got his goal.”

The focus now turns to the capital on Wednesday night when the Hoops take on Hearts on league duty.

The manager added: “Every game is going to be tough, every game is a challenge and we’ve just got to keep building on what we’ve been doing.

“We’re overcoming the challenges and there will be another one on Wednesday night but I’m looking forward to it.”

The game against Raith Rovers is scheduled to go ahead on the weekend of February 12.

Further details on date, kick-off time and tickets to follow on www.celticfc.com

Manager looking forward to home comforts in next round of the Scottish Cup