I praised Philippe Clement’s tactics in the final yesterday. For the way he shifted fan sentiment from one of a loser to one of a sufferer, he deserves more. Well done, Phil.
It is suggested that rather than converting a Newco foul into a penalty, referee John Beaton and VAR Alan Muir chose to ignore the situation. There are three acts to the occurrence.
Act One: Liam Scales fouling Vaclav Cerny right outside the penalty box was captured on Premier Sports’ primary camera. In Act Three, the same camera captured Liam Scales tugging Cerny’s shirt in the box and on the line.
Act Two is a different matter. Cerny’s right arm extend in front of Scales is the only thing visible from the primary camera. You must look at the camera behind the goal to see the reveal, as we witness Cerny touch Scales’ jersey while Scales touches his. Cerny touched him, and Scales lost his balance.
The referee had to decide whether to award a free kick for Act One or to wave play on when two players pulled at each other, as we in the North Stand witnessed.
Although there isn’t a Celtic supporters’ inquest about this event, the controversy might have arisen if VAR had disregarded Cerny’s hand on the falling Liam Scales and suggested a penalty.
I feel sorry for the media, who were robbed by Clement and probably just looked at the main camera viewpoint before dousing the embers with kerosene.
In contrast to managers, TV viewers, and post-match reporters, VAR has the opportunity to review an occurrence from several cameras before making a decision. Football is inherently controversial, but this was not a glaring mistake, and it is incorrect to try to present it as such. If Phil is still in-post for the next time the teams play at Hampden, we could agree to look at things from both perspectives. Perhaps he should sit in the North Stand with the Celtic supporters.
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