Neil McCann believes Celtic were fortunate to benefit from a VAR error following Kyogo Furuhashi’s second goal in their emphatic 6-0 victory over St Johnstone.
The Scottish champions dominated at McDiarmid Park, scoring six past goalkeeper Ross Sinclair to maintain their perfect start to the season and secure their place at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
The commanding win also served as ideal preparation for their upcoming Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund at the Westfalenstadion, where Brendan Rodgers will aim to cause a significant upset.
However, McCann, a former Rangers player, questioned the accuracy of the offside decision in the build-up to Kyogo’s goal.
The Japanese striker found space between Jack Sanders and Kyle Cameron to meet Greg Taylor’s cross from the left wing, heading home with precision.
But McCann raised concerns about the use of Artificial Intelligence in the decision-making process, suggesting the lines drawn by VAR were incorrect.
Speaking on Sportscene, McCann said: “This Celtic side break at speed – and they don’t mess about now. They are so efficient going forward.
“That is a quite brilliant cross from Greg Taylor, but again it’s one of the ones where we are having a go at Artificial Intelligence. That looked slightly offside, the lines are drawn in, and we have to trust them. Nonetheless, it’s a superb header.”
Interestingly, Scottish football does not currently use semi-automated offside technology or AI to determine such decisions, unlike what was seen in tournaments like Euro 2024.
In fact, the Scottish Premiership, like the English Premier League, relies on manual line drawing from the VAR room. While leagues such as Serie A and the Bundesliga have embraced AI in their systems, the Premier League has delayed introducing the technology until 2025.
For now, Scottish football must continue to rely on human judgement in VAR decisions, and McCann’s remarks reflect ongoing concerns about the accuracy and consistency of the current system.