CRAIG LEVEIN last night reiterated his belief that while he was the Dundee Utd manager, a referee was awarded his final game as a whistler at Ibrox against Dundee Utd because he was a Rangers fan.

Speaking on Monday evening, cited by Evening Times, the former boss said: “Well I can go back to a game when I was at Dundee United at Ibrox and the official was absolutely appalling.

“He made mistake, after mistake, after mistake. It was his last game. His very last game. And he got given a game at Ibrox because, I believe, he was a Rangers fan.”

This is a serious allegation by Levein but one not many Celtic fans will be surprised over.

It’s incumbent on the governing body to now come out and give an explanation into what Craig has said and either confirm or deny what transpired.

No referee should be awarded a final game at any ground in the country and they should especially NOT be allowed to referee a club they support in their final game. With absolutely nothing to lose as you’re about to walk out the door, human nature can take over and you can easily become compromised.

This type of scenario has implications for Celtic. There is a long held belief that referees who support either side of the Glasgow divide should not referee their matches. In Scotland, we have seen Rangers fans take charge of the Glasgow Derby on a regular basis.

Officials in England have to declare who they support so they can’t officiate matches involving that club. It protects the FA and the official themselves from being accused of any sort of bias during any given game.

Levein’s accusation is astonishing and this simply can’t be swept under the carpet.