Gary Keown rages over ‘scandal’ as new Rangers v Celtic controversy emerges from Old Firm

A “scandal” that occurred during the Rangers vs. Celtic match has left Gary Keown furious as more controversy surrounding the Old Firm derby has surfaced.

With a 2-1 victory on Saturday, December 30, Brendan Rodgers’ team increased their lead atop the Scottish Premiership. However, one specific controversial decision has dominated the response to the Glasgow derby.

Rangers were denied a clear penalty late in the first half after Alistair Johnstone touched the ball in the penalty area. However, officials later stated that Abdallah Sima had drifted offside, negating the penalty, and Keown called the procedure a “complete mess.”

scandal

While there are always decisions in games that see eyebrows raised and frustration emerge around at least one team, this call during Saturday’s Old Firm clash was nothing short of scandalous and Rangers are within their rights to be irritated.

Johnstone clearly handled the ball out of play and while it is disappearing to see the on-field referee miss such a clear moment in a match, VAR was introduced into the game to help referees with these exact incidents.

Instead, for a reason that still remains unclear, play was waved on after a lengthy check and after halftime the blame was placed on Sima. Why that wasn’t communicated with anybody at Celtic Park until more than 15 minutes later remains unknown.

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