Rangers: Bobby Madden shares verdict on major incident in loss to Motherwell at Ibrox
Bobby Madden has shared his view on one of the big refereeing controversies during the match between Rangers and Motherwell at Ibrox.
The Gers fell to a 2-1 reverse on home soil on Saturday (2 March), but were thankfully given a reprieve as Celtic lost to Hearts the next day.
Dan Casey scored the winning goal, but he was somewhat fortunate to be on the field following an earlier challenge on Ross McCausland.
The Motherwell defender was not even shown a yellow card to the fury of Philippe Clement, but Madden feels he should have been dismissed.
“You just can’t tackle like that anymore. Playing the ball is not a consideration,” the ex-FIFA official said on his personal Instagram page [4 March].
“It’s all centred around player safety. Did the player show a disregard, which would be a yellow card for reckless challenge.
“Or did he endanger the safety of the opponent, which is a red card for serious foul play.
“VAR had a real opportunity to recommend an on field review to the referee as it was essentially a missed incident as no foul was given live.
“No significant contact was made with the studs, more by luck than design, but the pace and intensity of the challenge would warrant a red card.”
Rangers punished by Dan Casey at Ibrox
The reaction of the Rangers players and staff members on the bench said it all about this dangerous challenge on McCausland.
It is staggering that it was initially missed by on-field ref Alan Muir and then not referred to by Euan Anderson in the VAR room for a second look.
The fact that Casey went on to score the winner only added insult to injury as the Gers’ winning run came to a halt in front of the Ibrox faithful.
That was not the only big refereeing decision that raised eyebrows, as was also the case in Celtic’s loss to Hearts at Tynecastle.
The worry is that these calls will decide the tense title race one way or the other, with just two points separating the Old Firm rivals.
Many would rather see the back of VAR, but if it is there then it has to be used for incidents such as this.
These decisions supposedly balance themselves out over the course of a campaign, but it certainly does not feel that way right now.
In other Rangers news, a journalist has defended Hibernian’s right to cut the Gers’ ticket allocation in the future.
For more Rangers news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.