KILMARNOCK, SCOTLAND - AUGUST 20: Celtic's Sead Haksabanovic questions Referee Alan Muir during a Viaplay Cup Round of Sixteen match between Kilmarnock and Celtic at Rugby Park, on August 20, 2023, in Kilmarnock, Scotland. (Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Even with the benefit of Sky Sports cameras Alan Muir couldn’t bring himself to award a penalty to Celtic at Motherwell today.
It is fair to say that the Aberdeen based official has quite a lengthy charge list which probably helped him to land a full time job with the SFA as a VAR official.
Soon after Celtic had opened the scoring at Motherwell through Luke McCowan came the sort of incident that VAR is designed to clarify.
Ending flat out on the ground Daizen Maeda put the ball into the net but it clearly came off his arm, referee David Dickinson initially awarded a goal then took instructions from his friend Muir on VAR duty.
With the benefit of various cameras it was clear that Stephen O’Donnell ran into the Celtic forward which explains why he ended up horizontal.
The ‘goal’ was rightly disallowed but for reasons that barely need explained Muir refused to award a penalty for the push.
If there was no push then Maeda should have been booked for diving or for using his arm to put the ball into the net. Even Muir knew that that would have been too extreme an action to get away with.
? “Well that was clear…”
Bit of confusion as Celtic thought they’d doubled their lead but the goal was disallowed for handball – although should they have had a penalty? ? pic.twitter.com/zqdKWgkAqG
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) October 27, 2024
Muir first came to prominence at the 2015 Scottish Cup semi-final against Inverness Caley Thistle where he was an Additional Assistant behind the goal.
As Josh Meekings lifted his arm to block a goalbound header from Leigh Griffiths referee Steven McLean refused to award a penalty with Muir, perfectly placed and specifically on duty for such situations refusing to intervene and award a penalty. At that time Meekings would have been sent off.
Last season Muir refereed Celtic’s League Cup defeat at Kilmarnock with the hoops down to 10 men as Greg Taylor received treatment following a brutal head high challenge from Danny Armstrong that went unpunished.
With Celtic pushing for an equaliser Sead Haksabanovic was chopped down heading for the by-line, Muir refused to award a penalty with his colleague Don Robertson deciding against applying the Laws of the Game from the VAR studio.
After the final whistle Muir seemed especially pleased for Derek McInnes who he shared a fraternal handshake with.
A picture speaks a thousand words pic.twitter.com/djpXxBaQvN
— Crackerman (@mostlyceltic81) August 20, 2023
If it’s a 3-gamer, does Liam Gordon’s VAR-dictated red mean he misses the semi vs them next week? It made fuck all difference to our game, coming that late, but it will help them if he’s banned.
We’re not paranoid enough, Joe. Stonewall penalty anywhere else in the world.
Penalty And Red Card.. the bigot ref stands yards away did nothing..
Rodger’s shat himself to mention it..
The time to be saying it is when you’ve won and won well…
It happened last week with a stonewall penalty not given but with it ending up a draw it’d have been twisted as ‘sour grapes’
But yesterday was the golden chance and we blew it again…
Having said that Brendan might be waiting until later in the season like in March after The Tynecastle cheating scandal !
Our club should be going after this crooked hun c*nt
Impartial pundit Andy Halliday will be on snide tomorrow night saying he didn’t think it was a pen
and that hun gimp Roger Hannah will agree
Sutton another soup taker, sky pays his wages as bad as Keane the clown
Don’t know what has happened to him. He was a bankrupt and may desperate to keep hold of this job but I always thought he was amazing, completely going against the rest with his honest opinions. Perhaps he has been warned.
It started last season when Hart I think it was, was hit full on the face with studs showing by Dessers(?) and his comment was “these things happen”!!
Well there seems to be a pattern with
This official .
I must say when.i saw the incident it looked like a penalty all day long .
The thing is that the penalty infringement happened b4 the hand ball .
To watch that footage and say that’s a legitimate tackle tell you all u need to know about officials in Spfl
Ridiculous call
Tell me how many European Championship tournaments or World Cup tournaments has this BIGOTED HUN supporter officiated at,oh that’s right the MIDDLE OF A FUCKIN DOUGHNUT.
Then you see photos of the BIGOT exchanging TICKLY HANDSHAKES with McInnes,I rest my case.
I wonder what wee willie collum will say to spin this . We know the smsm will spin it that (VAR got it correct) …. let’s for arguments sake wee willie says VAR got it wrong (cheated) what punishment will the cheating Muir get…. NOTHING… and so the cheating will continue…….as I’ve said many times IF THE PUNISHMENT FOR CHEATING IS …NO PUNISHMENT….,WHY STOP CHEATING
What was BR thinking putting Bernardo, our best attacking midfielder in that absolutely useless holding position. I kept wondering why he wasn’t running with the ball as usual until
Sutton pointed it out.
Why put the subs on so late?
Sorry if this annoys anyone but…
Now on to Wednesday and no doubt the cheats dressed in black will be out in force to help the klan klub out.
I reckon a Dons player to be sent off inside 10 minutes with a penalty awarded to sevco to ease their fears.
That will kill game dead there and then.
Alan Manure has a track record of not awarding Celtic penalties. I wonder how many he awarded to sevco, on their record-breaking seventy two penalties in-a-row run?!