Dundee manager Neil McCann was irritated that his side did not get a penalty at Celtic Park yesterday afternoon as Brendan Rodgers’ side extended their unbeaten domestic run to 59 games.
A solitary goal from Celtic midfielder Olivier Ntcham was all that separated the sides but it was a second-half clash of heads between Cristian Gamboa and Jack Hendry that McCann felt should have resulted in a spot kick.
“I think it is a penalty. I don’t care if it is accidental. Big Jack has gone in and won the header and he has been cleaned out by Gamboa,” said McCann. “I don’t see why it is not a penalty. Anywhere on the pitch that is a free kick. I hear it all the time and it is what angers managers. Why not in the box? He has been cleaned out and it should have been a penalty.”
“The linesman said he felt it wasn’t one cleanly, it was a 50-50 header well my big centre back in there has got a lovely wee medal to take away from Celtic Park with the opening of his eye and that for me just cements that he was cleaned out.”
The Celtic manager, inevitably, took a different view.
“If you watch it again, the boy Hendy clips the ball over our boy’s head,” said Rodgers. “If you watch it closely, Cristian Gamboa actually jumps first. He’s on his way so he can’t stop, he can’t move, he’s in mid-air.
“The boy just gets to the ball a fraction before him.
“If that’s outside the box it’s a clash of heads and it’s unfortunate but it’s a dropped ball. The physios go, it’s a bounced ball and we play on.
“If it’s in the box then of course I expect Neil to shout for a penalty. But I felt the referee made a really good decision on it.”
Rodgers made seven changes to the team that drew with Hibs, but it was goalkeeper Doris de Vries with his first competitive appearance in 13 months who stole the headlines with an impressive display.
“It's a testament to how professional he is and how hard he works,” said Rodgers. “He didn't have a great deal to do but he showed his agility and concentration to make the saves.”
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