Conclusive proof of contact as Ajeti charged with diving

Albian Ajeti was cited for simulation today for his part in winning a penalty against Kilmarnock on Tuesday night. The Swiss International, a £5m arrival from West Ham, chased the ball away from goal when Kevin Clancy adjudged Doyle to have tripped him.

Odsonne Edouard stepped up and doubled Celtic’s lead. However, following the game, The SFA confirmed that Ajeti would be offered a two-game ban

Celtic double their lead but Doyle probably should have done better with Edouard’s penalty. A long way back now for the home side.

📺 Kilmarnock vs Celtic is live on Sky Sports Football. pic.twitter.com/1MLc05Gsfj

— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) February 2, 2021

🤔 pic.twitter.com/9xgZzimfRk

— COYBIG (@C_O_Y_B_I_G) February 4, 2021

The goalkeeper’s hand makes contact with Ajeti’s foot. Dive😂 pic.twitter.com/B45RX8wHsD

— Kieran (@Kieran_Celtic) February 4, 2021

Ajeti’s heel is hit by Doyle’s hand, it is soft but it is still a penalty. The use of retrospective action is quite bizarre considering that you can clearly see contact impacting his left ankle. Celtic should appeal immediately, given the fact that there is obvious contact but also because accepting this punishment opens a can of worms. You can be punished for being fouled? But if you are given a yellow card for a reckless challenge you may not have this upgraded.

SFA charging Ajeti is quite funny. You can say it’s soft or not a penalty (I personally didn’t think it was).

But there is clear evidence there’s contact so it can’t even fall under the category of a dive.

If Celtic don’t push back and appeal that I’d be very surprised

— Bhoys Analytics (@BhoysAnalytics) February 4, 2021

Incidents like this showcase why VAR should be considered in the Scottish game, if there is a doubt about whether there is contact – allow the referee to check it. But in hindsight, you can clearly see that Ajeti is clipped.