Chris Sutton has criticised Vaclav Cerny for his actions during Sunday’s Glasgow Derby, after the Rangers winger sprayed water at Celtic fans while celebrating his side’s late winner.
Cerny ran down the touchline of the main stand to celebrate Igamane’s goal and was seen spraying water towards the Celtic support in the main stand.
The SFA and Police Scotland are now investigating the incident, with calls growing for Cerny to face punishment for his actions. He could face up to an 8 game ban for his actions.
Speaking to the Daily Record, Sutton condemned Cerny’s actions, pointing out that players are warned not to incite the crowd before these matches.
“Vaclav Cerny squirting Celtic fans with his water bottle, that was just silly.
“Look, it’s only water but Rangers and Celtic players are warned going into these games not to incite the crowd.
“There was just no need for it. It just invited all kinds of trouble, even if that is no real excuse for bad behaviour in the stands.
“We’re trying to get back to having away fans regularly involved in this fixture as it does add to the occasion.
“But we’re repeatedly seeing incidents of missiles being thrown, fireworks and flares going off and other carry on. We don’t need players adding to the mayhem. The game sells itself.
“Sunday was a sensational football match, and it would have had viewers captivated all over the world. It pretty much always is. We don’t need any more nonsense.”
With the SFA and Police now investigating, there is a real possibility Cerny could face disciplinary action. If the roles were reversed, and a fan had squirted a player with water, there’s little doubt they would be ejected from the stadium or even charged.
There have been growing discussions about player behaviour and sportsmanship, and this kind of incident crosses a line. While some may downplay it as “just water,” the fact remains that professional footballers should be held to the same standards as fans when it comes to conduct at matches.
Whether Cerny will face punishment remains to be seen, but his actions were completely unnecessary, and it’s no surprise that Sutton and others have called him out for it.
