BRENDAN RODGERS has defended referee Craig Thompson for not brandishing a red to Hibernian player Darnell Johnston for his horror tackle on Emilio Izaguirre.
Both players had gone into win the ball when Darnell went in studs first and put all his weight down on the Honduran’s ankle. There was an audible gasp inside Celtic Park when it happened and the Celtic left-back didn’t get back up from the challenge.
It looked a clear red to most people in the stadium but Craig Thompson only deemed the horror tackle worth a yellow card, much to the bemusement of fans inside the ground.
Speaking to CelticTV after the game, Brendan Rodgers was hesitant to put too much blame on Thompson.
“Listen, Craig Thomson is a very good referee. He maybe didn’t see it at the time, he was maybe blinded by it.
“But, yeah, it wasn’t a good challenge at all.”
Izzy was stretchered off and it didn’t look good, however, after the game, Brendan Rodgers told Celtic fans the player’s injury isn’t as bad as first feared and he should be ok in a few days. It’s a lucky escape!
