Rangers v Celtic: Brendan Rodgers mocked over John Beaton comments
Gary Keown has mocked Brendan Rodgers for his mixed comments about referee John Beaton ahead of the Old Firm derby between Rangers and Celtic on Sunday (7 April).
The Hoops boss has previously insisted that Beaton is “one of the top referees in the country” before blasting the official after Celtic’s 2-0 loss to Hearts on Sunday 3 March.
Rodgers’ comments about Beaton earned him a one-match touchline ban after pointing out his “incompetence”, having played a part in Hyun-Jun Yang’s sending-off and Tomoki Iwata conceding a penalty.
Writing for the Scottish Mail on Sunday (7 April, page 101), Keown said: “As for the real storyline in the game?
“Well, there’s the small business of John Beaton being the man in the middle, fresh from Rodgers insisting he has ‘always said that John Beaton is one of the top referees in the country’ – except for that one time at Tynecastle last month when he said John Beaton was incompetent and got banned.”
John Beaton steals Old Firm spotlight ahead of Rangers v Celtic
Whoever was given the high-status job of refereeing the Old Firm derby was always going to have a tough afternoon ahead, but Beaton’s appointment was bound to cause some controversy.
His recent involvements with Rodgers could sway his decisions either way, trying to make amends with the Celtic boss or favouring Rangers because of him, but Beaton is a professional.
Of course, referees are going to make mistakes from time to time. VAR should always be there to help, but decisions can still be subjective, especially with how some people understand the rules.
Philippe Clement and the Gers will be hoping that they can decide the result of the Old Firm derby, rather than have to worry about the referee’s decisions, but there is bound to be some kind of controversy in this massive game.
With the rivals separated by just a single point at the top of the Scottish Premiership, the importance of the clash cannot be understated, and Clement will know this heading to Ibrox.
In other Rangers news, Barry Ferguson has revealed his preferred starting line-up to face Celtic.
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.