Derek McInnes drops ‘disappointed’ admission in Rangers v Kilmarnock controversy amid VAR review
Derek McInnes has admitted that his Kilmarnock side should not have been awarded a penalty against Rangers in February after a recent review of VAR decisions in the Scottish Premiership.
As reported by Sky Sports on Wednesday (1 May), an independent panel found that 26 incorrect decisions had been made in the Scottish Premiership this season, one of them being awarded against the Gers.
John Lundstram was penalised for a handball in a 2-1 win over Kilmarnock, which Danny Armstrong scored to take the lead, though it has come to light that the decision should not have been made.
Speaking to Sky Sports, as transcribed by Daily Record on Wednesday (1 May), McInnes said: “The handball here on John Lundstram, I thought initially it was clear as day, his hand was up. But when you see it again, you can see why Rangers were disappointed the penalty was given.
“When the contact was made, his arm was in. It probably shouldn’t have been a penalty. We’ve got to get better and clearer messaging with a lot of these issues, particularly the handball.”
Rangers avoid VAR frustrations against Kilmarnock
While VAR has continued to steal the spotlight across the entire sport, especially in the Premier League, Rangers worked hard not to let the decision ruin their title hopes in February.
James Tavernier and Tom Lawrence scored four minutes apart to overturn Armstrong’s early penalty and secure all three points at Rugby Park, though VAR will certainly still play a role this season.
The independent panel also found that Dujon Sterling was wrongly sent off against Aberdeen in February, though this was also not detrimental to the Gers in a 2-1 win with just two minutes of the match remaining.
Luckily, Rangers have not been as affected by the wrong decisions as some others, though they still need a good run of results to pip their Old Firm rivals to the Scottish Premiership title this season.
With just three points separating them from Celtic at the top of the table, Philippe Clement’s side must be nothing short of perfect if they are to claim just their second league title in the last decade.
In other Rangers news, a manager has admitted he is trying to buy a “great” Ibrox attacker this summer.
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