Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has weighed in on Ianis Hagi’s second-half penalty shout during Sunday’s 1-1 Glasgow derby, backing the officials’ decision to wave it away.
The incident occurred during a goalmouth scramble, with Hagi going to ground under pressure from Callum McGregor after Nicolas Raskin’s blocked shot broke loose in the box. Both players were stretching for the loose ball, with McGregor getting his body between the Romanian and the ball.
Rangers players appealed immediately, but referee Nick Walsh saw nothing in it, and VAR chose not to intervene.
Speaking on Sky Sports’ Ref Watch, Gallagher supported the on-field call, dismissing any suggestion of a foul. “I just think it’s a reaction of two players reaching for the ball. Not a penalty, for me,” he said.
The decision was one of few talking points in what was a largely uneventful match. But as always in derby fixtures, every penalty claim is heavily scrutinised.
That’s been three derby games now on the trot that the talking points in the days after the match haven’t centred around a poor decision from VAR.
Gallagher’s view reinforces the notion that both McGregor and Hagi had a right to go for the ball, with the Celtic captain simply using his body well to shield it.
With VAR protocols in place and no evidence of a clear and obvious error, the officials stuck with the on-pitch decision, and Gallagher sees no reason why they should have done otherwise.
