Celtic’s manager, Brendan Rodgers, raised concerns over the officiating during their recent European fixture, following several contentious decisions that left fans and players alike bewildered.
Celtic weren’t clinical enough as they fell to a 2-1 loss to struggling Italian side Lazio.
An attached video clip shows Celtic’s Hatate seemingly receiving a deliberate blow to the face. This, along with other questionable decisions, including an overlooked high boot, has drawn criticism from the Celtic camp.
Very very surprised that VAR never checked this. Looks like he knew what he was doing. pic.twitter.com/7pDXLmlTye
— Get Involved Referee! (@GetInvolvedRef) October 4, 2023
Commenting on the referee’s performance, Rodgers said: [TNT Sports]
“They’re not so good. There’s a lot you see now and in Europe, it’s a bit more precious even than the domestic game. I watched the Champions League games last night and obviously tonight, some strange decisions to be honest. I’ll focus more on the performance and the performance deserved something from the game. We didn’t quite get that but we’ll fight another day.”
The match’s outcome, coupled with the controversial decisions, will surely be a talking point for fans and analysts in the coming days. As the European campaign progresses, Celtic will be hoping for more consistent officiating and more clinical performances in future fixtures.
Celtic’s chances of playing European football after Christmas took a real blow with the loss against Lazio, especially sitting with no points after the first two matchdays.
