Better times ahead insists Tony Mowbray after Celtic narrow gap on Rangers

• Aiden McGeady and Marc-Antoine Fortune celebrate the 2-0 win over Hearts that moved Celtic to within eight points of SPL leaders Rangers. Picture: SNS

While Rangers dropped two points in a 1-1 draw against Motherwell at Fir Park, goals from Glenn Loovens and Marc-Antoine Fortune earned Mowbray's side a much-needed 2-0 victory over Hearts at Celtic Park.

On a night which saw January transfer window recruits Robbie Keane, Diomansy Kamara, Edson Braafheid and Thomas Rogne make their home debuts for Celtic, manager Mowbray hailed the result as an indication of better times ahead for his much-changed squad.

"This team has only just been thrown together," said Mowbray, "and they will only get better. We will improve from this point on. We have five of our new signings still living in hotels at the moment, which is not ideal when you are trying to get a new team to settle, but it will get better.

"It was a professional enough performance from us tonight and we got the job done. We have got to win football matches at the moment. I can't have any influence on results elsewhere, but I hope we can start winning week in, week out. We have some big games coming up, some bigger than others, and we have to win them."

While the result was all important for Celtic, there was an element of frustration for the home supporters, who had hoped to see on-loan Tottenham striker Keane shine in his first home appearance. The Republic of Ireland captain, however, failed to net his first goal in open play for his temporary employers as he missed a handful of excellent opportunities.

"On another night he could have scored three or four goals," added Mowbray. "Somewhere along the line, he will do that. You saw the evidence tonight of the positions he gets into. The chances will keep coming to him and I've no fears about him scoring goals."

There was concern for Mowbray in the shape of another injury suffered by a defender as Loovens limped off with a hamstring strain in the second half. The Dutch international was replaced by 19-year-old Norwegian stopper Rogne who joined 18-year-old Josh Thompson at the heart of Mowbray's back four. Loovens joins Darren O'Dea, Jos Hooiveld and Andreas Hinkel on the injured list.

"I didn't envisage us having two teenagers together in central defence at this point of the season," said Mowbray. "Loovens pulled his hamstring and at this stage I can't say whether he will be fit for our game at Aberdeen on Saturday."

Meanwhile, at Fir Park, Craig Brown refused to criticise assistant referee John Gilmour for the decision that cost his team victory against Rangers – even though the Motherwell manager stepped on to the field to remonstrate with the official at full time.

Gilmour wrongly flagged Ross Forbes for offside when he darted forward to turn in a Stephen Craigan shot that would have put the home side 2-0 in front early in the second period. Instead, a Kris Boyd strike ten minutes from time secured a point for Rangers.

Brown would not accept invitations to repeat his chiding of Gilmour to the press, though he admitted there was "a sense of injustice in the home dressing room". "I've seen TV evidence and it would indicate the goal was okay," said the Motherwell manager. "I hadn't seen it but was being told from the adjacent television camera that both Stephen Craigan and Ross Forbes were onside, but the officials have got jobs to do and they do them honestly. I've always been an advocate of not criticising officials so I would do that – certainly not publicly."

On Rangers' trip to Fir Park in November 2008, Rangers manager Walter Smith lambasted assistant Tom Murphy for wrongly flagging a Boyd strike offside. Last night, as he accepted Rangers had been on the receiving end of a favourable break, he became rather sensitive to how this might play in the context of his team enjoying a few recent kindly calls.

"They say the boy was onside but I think, if I remember correctly, we had one knocked off here with Kris Boyd. Sometimes they go for you, sometimes they go against you gentlemen, but if you wish to cast your mind back, we would have won that game as well," said Smith, who admitted the first half from his team was "as poor as we've been in weeks".