Dermot Gallagher spots what referee missed in Celtic’s Motherwell penalty controversy

Celtic were still leading Motherwell by a single goal when Callum McGregor’s effort struck Lukas Fadinger inside the penalty area at Fir Park.

Referee Steven McLean awarded a corner, and VAR official Don Robertson allowed play to continue without recommending an on-field review.

McGregor appeared satisfied with the corner, but the incident has since attracted attention after Sky Sports examined the footage from different camera angles.

Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher reviewed the decision on Ref Watch alongside Jay Bothroyd and Tim Sherwood, with the three reaching the same conclusion.

Gallagher felt Fadinger’s arm position gave Celtic a strong argument for a penalty, particularly when the incident was viewed from behind McGregor.

Speaking on Sky Sports Ref Watch, Gallagher said: “This is really interesting because when you see it from one angle, you think no. When you see it from the other end, Callum McGregor’s angle here, his arm looks as though it’s out. But Callum McGregor just wants a corner. It hits his arm. It’s his back arm as well. So if he gets penalised, he gets penalised. I think he got lucky there.”

Sherwood immediately agreed, saying: “He got lucky.” Bothroyd added: “Yeah. Got lucky.”

Gallagher stopped short of saying McLean had made a definite mistake, but all three agreed that Fadinger had been fortunate.

McGregor’s reaction was one of the details Gallagher picked up on, with the Celtic captain asking for a corner rather than a penalty. But whether McGregor appealed was irrelevant to the handball decision.

Under IFAB’s handball laws, a player can be penalised if their arm makes their body unnaturally bigger and its position cannot be justified by their movement.

Fadinger had turned to block McGregor’s effort, leaving the officials to judge whether the position of his back arm warranted punishment.

VAR also had to consider whether McLean’s original decision was a clear and obvious error, rather than simply whether a penalty could reasonably have been awarded.

Gallagher clearly thought there was a case for Celtic getting the decision, although that does not automatically mean Robertson should have intervened.

The incident came with Celtic chasing a second goal after Camilo Duran’s ninth-minute opener. Benjamin Nygren eventually settled the contest in the 58th minute as O’Neill’s side dominated a match that Motherwell manager Alfred Johansson admitted his team struggled to handle.

McLean’s decision ultimately had no bearing on the result, but Celtic had a reasonable penalty claim that Gallagher and his fellow pundits felt Motherwell were fortunate to survive.