Chris Sutton shares what’s wrong with VAR in Scotland after what Dermot Gallagher said about Celtic incidents

Nyikwagh stephen | March 4, 2024 | Celtic fc | No Comments

After losing to Heart of Midlothian 2-0 yesterday afternoon, Celtic is now in the middle of a VAR storm that is unlikely to subside anytime soon.

Brendan Rodgers was furious at full time after two crucial rulings against the Bhoys at Tynecastle significantly impacted the outcome.Hyunjun Yang was sent off early in the game for the visitors after he tackled Alex Cochrane too hard. This happened just after he helped win a penalty that Adam Idah was unable to convert.

Yang was first given a yellow card by Don Robertson for the offence, but after reviewing the challenge, he was sent to the monitor and the yellow was escalated to a straight red card.

Before the break, in an equally contentious incident, Tomoki Iwata was called for a handball in the area even though he wasn’t really looking in the direction the play was going. Celtic comeback, Hamish bids adieu, and 67 Hail Hail’s future Hyunjun Yang was sent off early in the game for the visitors after he tackled Alex Cochrane too hard. This happened just after he helped win a penalty that Adam Idah was unable to convert.

Don Robertson initially booked Yang for the offence; however, he was sent to the monitor to review the challenge and subsequently upgraded the yellow to a straight red card.
In an incident before the interval that has caused just as much controversy, Tomoki Iwata was reprimanded for a handball in the area despite not actually looking in the direction play was headed.

After reviewing the challenge, Don Robertson increased Yang’s yellow card to a straight red one. Yang was originally booked for the offence. Before the half, Tomoki Iwata was called for a handball in the area even though he wasn’t really looking in the direction that play was going, an event that has generated just as much debate.

This season, there have been countless other situations around the nation that have gone unpunished. However, Celtic was subjected to a peculiar evaluation procedure including Robertson and VAR official John Beaton, which resulted in the awarding of a penalty that Jorge Grant converted for the home team.

Hearts had the advantage with Rodgers’ team already reduced to ten men, and Lawrence Shankland secured three points in the 56th minute.

The Irishman stated in his post-match press conference: “I never like to comment on officials, it’s not something I do. But that cost us today. The officiating from on the field to John Beaton being in VAR, that was really, really poor.”In today’s edition of Sky Sports feature Ref Watch, former official Dermot Gallagher opined that referees have penalised every instance similar to Iwata’s handball in Scottish football this season.

In his news conference following the game, the Irishman said, “I never like to comment on officials; it’s not something I do.” But we now paid a price for that. The officiating was really subpar, from John Beaton using VAR to the officials on the pitch.Dermot Gallagher, a former official, stated in today’s episode of Sky Sports’ Ref Watch that officials have penalised every incident in Scottish football this season that is comparable to Iwata’s handball.

“What you would say is, we’ve seen this in the Scottish league all season,” the Irishman asserted on the programme. The one thing they’ve always said is that handball has been fined in any situation similar to that. Hard, very, very unlucky, is how I see it. But to their credit, each and every one of them has contributed.Chris Sutton, a former Celtic legend, has now added more fuel to the flames about VAR in the Scottish game by using social media platform X.The 50-year-old further claimed that it’s possible the Iwata incident wasn’t thoroughly investigated before Celtic was awarded a penalty.When a decision that divides opinion in Scotland affects the result of a game, there is typically an investigation in the days that follow, covering all aspect of the Scottish football landscape, social media, and mainstream media.

It should come as no surprise that a team like Celtic is the same in that regard, and supporters are obviously angry about what happened in the capital.On the other hand, things aren’t particularly made better by the lack of transparency surrounding those conversations. It raises the question of whether referees will be able to use a platform in the future to provide an explanation for their conclusions.