Should it have been a penalty on Saturday? Yes, every St Mirren supporter will say. Should Celtic have had a penalty against Bayern Munich? Yes, we all said so. But unfortunately the rules now say no…
Celtic survived a late scare against St Mirren on Saturday evening with the score poised at 3-2, and with St Mirren advancing in our penalty area Alistair Johnston challenged for the ball and seemed to take out his opponent in the process.
Much to our relief the incident was cleared by VAR
Every Celtic supporter had their hands in their heads expecting the worse, even after the officials waved play on due to VAR being in operation. Much to our relief it was cleared, but having had several looks at the incident it’s clear that we were rather fortunate not to have conceded a spot kick, and St Mirren can have every right to feel aggrieved, especially as we extended our lead just soon after.
🗣️ “I think everybody knows it was a penalty. He gets a slight touch and then follows through”
🗣️ “We don’t get it which isn’t really a surprise”Stephen Robinson on Alistair Johnston’s challenge on Roland Idowu in their 5-2 defeat to Celtic ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/ehReiJ1eeL
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) March 1, 2025
It would be hypocritical to say otherwise as we too felt very aggrieved after we were denied a spot kick in similar circumstances against Bayern Munich at Celtic park just a few weeks ago.
I still maintain that the challenge on Arne Engels that night was worthy of a spot kick and the referee blundered by not giving it even after having the advantage of a second look. So I can only say that AJ’s challenge should have faced the same consequences on Saturday.
The rules of the game as they currently stand
But here’s the most important part. Apparently going by the rules of the game, if you get a touch on the ball no matter how minimal, and take the player out, then it’s now not a foul. So unfortunately for us and for St Mirren the officials were just implementing the laws of the game, no matter how questionable they may be.
Although it will be interesting to see how the so called refereeing experts in the media spin it today…
Just an Ordinary Bhoy
Celtic in the Thirties
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Yes penalty but would it have got st mirren poor boys as Robinson keep saying that pitch should have brought Celtic downed to St Mirrens level our left flank is empty at times shlup more attacking than defending but worth signing Robinson should be honest and tell viewer’s best team won and could have scored more penalty wouldn’t have got them the points last half hour they were outclassed
This and any other column can try to dissect it any way you like. I’m a Celtic fan too. But make no mistake, that was a stonewall penalty kick.
However, a penalty kick by no means is a certain goal, and as we have proven time and again, even when we DO lose late goals, is not necessarily the end of the scoring!
I still believe we would have won. We ripped the St. Mirren defence wide open twice afterwards within three minutes after the claim.
The fact is, after we made the substitutions on the hour, the three men we brought on turned the game on it’s head. We took total control from that point by dictating the pace of play.
But no question about it, that was a penalty!