Celtic fans have erupted in frustration after new footage of a penalty claim in their 4-0 victory against Kilmarnock was re-analysed by the Scottish FA.
The incident, which saw striker Kyogo Furuhashi brought down in the box by Kilmarnock goalkeeper Robby McCrorie, was a key talking point during the match. Despite the contact, no penalty was awarded at the time, leaving Celtic supporters fuming.
In response to increasing scrutiny over refereeing decisions, the Scottish FA recently introduced a monthly “VAR Review” show on their YouTube channel, aimed at analysing contentious decisions across Scottish football. One of the cases reviewed was the Furuhashi incident, which had sparked debate during the match.
Head of Referees Willie Collum has now admitted that the wrong decision was made. Speaking on the review show, Collum said: “We believe this was the wrong decision. We have coached the referees and the VARs that a penalty kick should’ve been awarded here.”
He went on to explain that the confusion stemmed from the nature of the play:
“Firstly, it’s an unexpected free kick which catches the on-field referee by surprise.
“It’s very difficult for the referee then to find an angle around the wall to get a proper view of the incident. The Celtic player clearly gets ahead, touches the ball past the goalkeeper, and we then believe that the goalkeeper’s actions are reckless. For us, this should have been a penalty kick.”
Collum also noted that an on-field review should have been requested, with the referee asked to make a judgement at the pitch-side monitor.
This admission has left Celtic fans enraged, especially given that the referee on the day, Don Robertson, and VAR official Greg Aitken, had the advantage of multiple replays but still failed to award the penalty. Fans took to social media to vent their anger, with many accusing the referees and the Scottish FA of bias and incompetence.
Messages flooded social platforms, with Celtic fans labelling the refereeing decisions as “embarrassing”, “biased”, “cheating”, and even “corrupt.”
Although the match ended in a comfortable 4-0 victory for Celtic, the revelation has only intensified the ongoing debate surrounding VAR and refereeing standards in Scottish football.
Angry Reactions from Hoops:
“They have it in black and white and plenty of time to watch and still get it wrong they are corrupt.
“Corruption recorded.
“Everyone involved should be docked money, made to retrain, and then sacked anyway.
“Everybody and their granny knew it was a penalty.
“Not moved? He’s going towards. Terrible from the var.
“It’s took them to the point where it irrelevant to speak about it. Clear cheating and corruption. Always against celtic.
“Jeezo man. He moves forward into him and wipes him out. It’s magic that we still win things despite blatant cheating.
“It’s absolutely insane. I want the audio from Engels being taken out in the derby game.
“VAR in principle is fine but the issue in Scotland is the biased and cheating bastards who are empowered to make appalling decisions like this.
“A ridiculous call by the ref and var. As blatant a pen as you’ll ever see.
“That’s embarrassing if it’s coming from the current head of referee he’s practically outed incompetent decision by another ref that would surely get a cold shoulder for the right observation.