Soccer
Kelechi Iheanacho of Celtic goes off in celebration, Chris Sutton. [Photo Credit/ Imago].
Super Eagles and Celtic forward Kelechi Iheanacho made the headlines after his side’s 2-0 UEFA Europa League loss to Braga, Soccernet.ng reports.
The former Manchester City man was hoping to continue his rich vein of form with the Hoops at Celtic Park, but his goal was wrongly disallowed.
Iheanacho collected a loose ball, lifted it over a defender and drove it beyond Lukas Hornicek in the Braga goal. Still, German referee Tobias Stieler ruled the strike out, judging the ball had brushed Iheanacho’s arm in the build-up.
Kelechi Iheanacho looked to have gotten Celtic back into the game… but VAR rules out his strike for handball ❌
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After the game, Iheanacho was livid, stating his side were robbed of the opportunity to bring themselves back into the match as they were just a goal down at the time.
“That was an awful decision from them. The ball didn’t hit my hand; it hit my face. It was an awful decision, and it changed the game.
“We could have been back in it. We are disappointed. I don’t know what they did there. The referee knows it wasn’t a handball. It changed the game, and hopefully, they can sort that out,” the ex-Sevilla man fumed.
Soccer Chris Sutton blasts VAR over Iheanacho goal
The Super Eagles forward wasn’t the only one who was upset about the decision. Former Chelsea and England forward, Sutton, in his column for the Daily Record, described the act as ‘shocking’.
“The disallowed goal was shocking. It might be the worst VAR decision I’ve ever seen, and Kelechi Iheanacho’s goal should have stood.
“Would it have changed the game? Quite possibly. Celtic were on top at that stage, and going level would have built on the momentum, and they could have gone on to win the game.
“Either way, there’s just a chronic lack of creativity. Sebastian Tounekti has shown promise and is prepared to take on his man.
“It’s still about the link-up with the rest, and that is going to take time. Iheanacho has come in and done okay, but he’s still clearly short of fitness,” the 52-year-old wrote.
Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers, was equally incensed by the decision to chalk off Iheanacho’s goal, revealing the club have asked UEFA for clarification.
“For the life of me, I don’t understand why it wasn’t given because it’s not even close to being handball.
“We’re still waiting on the explanation for that. It did serve as a catalyst [for Braga to go on and win the game].”
“I can’t understand why the referee isn’t asked to go and have a look at that. If you look at it once, twice, and I’m assuming the people in the VAR room have looked at it more than that, there’s absolutely no way it hits him there,” the former Leicester City boss opined.
Celtic are still unbeaten domestically and can make things right when they take on Kilmarnock in the league tomorrow.
Adefolahan Guerreiro
Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria.
With a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience.
He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, Sikiru Alimi, Sodiq Ismaila and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.
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