Chris Sutton slams ‘dangerous’ Rangers after brand new Ibrox saga
Chris Sutton has slammed Rangers’ criticism of Willie Collum following the VAR saga at Ibrox, claiming they are setting a dangerous precedent for Scottish football.
Sutton went on to claim that the Ibrox club are using the saga to deflect from their own issues after losing another Old Firm derby and to keep the pressure on the referees down the line.
The former Celtic striker called for Rangers to focus on the things they can control, and to focus their blame on Cyriel Dessers for the chances he missed at Parkhead or other players for their failings.
Writing in his Daily Record column [6 January], Sutton ranted: “For me, it was a blame game, a deflection tactic, after they fell short in another big match against Celtic. It’s blame Willie Collum, blame everyone else and take very little responsibility over the things that they can control.
“This route they’re going down by asking for Willie Collum not to be involved in any of their games is none of their business. And it’s a very dangerous precedent to set.
“We have a title race on and you have to pick your battles. They’ve picked the wrong one with Willie Collum and at that moment Scottish football didn’t need it.
“There has to be someone to blame and it’s Willie Collum to blame as far as Rangers fans are concerned. It’s not Cyriel Dessers for missing a guilt-edged chance or other players. Rangers should concentrate on the things they can control – and the fact of the matter is they are in a real title race.”
Sutton has a point
While the decision by Collum not to award a penalty at Celtic Park was a strange one, and the claims made to justify the call just made things worse, the continuous complaining and moaning about the decision is not going to change anything.
The result won’t change, and Rangers’ place behind Celtic in the league table won’t change either. That is something, however, that Philippe Clement and his team can affect themselves, and should be their focus rather than petty referee drama.
Complaints and questions are justified and needed to be asked, but they have now been answered and the focus must turn to making sure they remain in the title race – something that will require a level head and clear focus.
While there is no doubt that Clement, despite the off-field issues, will have his players focused on the task at hand, there has to be some recognition that they must continue to improve if they are to make the title their own – away from the Collum saga.
In other Rangers news, Kris Boyd has also hit out at the refereeing saga.