Mark Hateley: Allan McGregor should have been sent off in Rangers v Malmo
Mark Hateley claims goalkeeper Allan McGregor should have been sent off in the first half of Rangers’ clash against Malmo on Tuesday night.
Alfredo Morelos’ goal put the Gers ahead at the break but Steven Gerrard could have seen his side reduced to 10 men when McGregor handled the ball outside his box near half-time.
McGregor was booked for seemingly handling the ball outside the area but Hateley claims that it should have been a sending off.
Speaking on BBC Sportscene on Radio Scotland on Tuesday night, host Richard Gordon said: “He’s got a yellow card but I have to say, for me, he’s inside [the box], I don’t think he’s crossed the line.”
Ex-Gers striker Hateley then said: “He’s still inside, his body’s outside but his hands are still inside.
“If it’s a yellow card, it should be a red card.”
Gordon then said: “It makes no sense at all.
“We should say, the camera angle we’ve got, he’s right on the edge of the 18-yard line and the camera is not on the line. It looks like it’s miles over.”
Richard Foster then said: “I think he’s outside the box but the linesman is not in line with it so he doesn’t know for definite. He’s guessed.”
Yellow, red or nothing?
McGregor did touch the ball with his hands outside the box, therefore the referee was right to card him.
But should he have been booked or did he get lucky and escape what should have been a sending off?
It could have been seen as McGregor denying a clear goalscoring opportunity because when a player is one-on-one with a goalkeeper, that is definitely a big chance for someone to score.
If McGregor handled the ball inside the box, would it have made any difference to the goalscoring opportunity?
It’s a tough one but the veteran goalkeeper probably got off very lightly there because it easily could have been a red card.
Rangers have done well to get this lead with an impressive first-half performance against Malmo.
The score is now 2-2 on aggregate.
Let’s get a couple more goals in the second half and hope McGregor can redeem himself for that mix-up by giving us a clean sheet.
In other Rangers news, Michael Stewart sent an out-of-character message to the Gers ahead of the clash with Malmo.