Ally McCoist and John Hartson agree Rangers goal should have stood against Celtic
Ally McCoist and John Hartson both believe Rangers were unlucky to see Kemar Roofe’s first-half strike disallowed against Celtic, as Brendan Rodgers’ side “got away with one.”
Roofe’s goal, which would have been the opener, was ruled out after Cyriel Dessers was adjudged to have fouled Gustaf Lagerbielke in the build-up upon review by referee Don Robertson and VAR Alan Muir on Sunday (3 September).
Hartson was surprised that Celtic were the side to have the decision go their way, with the fixture played exclusively in front of Rangers fans at Ibrox, but he did believe the Gers could feel hard done by to not have the goal stand.
Speaking on TalkSport on Monday (4 September) as quoted by the Daily Record, Hartson said: “First of all, I am really, really surprised Celtic got the decision at Ibrox.”
McCoist quickly replied: “I know where you are on that. If you said you got the decision at Ibrox, that tells me everything, big fella.”
Hartson then explained: “I think Lagerbielke kicks Dessers’ calf. Lagerbielke is very clever. He goes over and almost buys the found of VAR and the referee. It wasn’t a foul, Celtic have got away with one. Over the course of the season, you like to think they level themselves off. But Celtic got the decision there at Ibrox.”
Frustrating
There has been so much anger and frustration from Rangers players and fans following the Old Firm defeat, a truly compounding end to the week that saw Michael Beale’s side also miss out on Champions League football at the hands of PSV.
But if Roofe’s opener had stood, it could have been a completely different feeling currently on the Blue side of Glasgow, as had the Gers gone on to win at Ibrox, there would be little to no talk about Beale’s future or the Light Blues’ recent shortcomings.
Whether or not you believe Lagerbielke, the Celtic man was clever as Hartson described it in his ability to win the decision and that is a characteristic Rangers could learn from, as to win titles you have to be able to find a way to win every game possible.
Rangers didn’t deserve to win the season’s first Old Firm, no matter if it was a foul or not, as they were bettered by Celtic on their own turf and there is so much work to be done by Beale and his players if they have genuine ambitions of winning the title this year.
One questionable VAR call will not be enough for Gers fans to let that sort of result or performance slide in the future.
In other Rangers news, one journalist has suggested that Beale may already be running out of time to keep his job at Ibrox