'It's not a perception' - Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou takes aim at VAR and slams Ibrox missile-throwers after Rangers derby

There is always plenty to digest in wake of an Old Firm derby and that was particularly the case for Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou this week after the 2-2 draw at Ibrox on Monday.

While the 57-year-old has been assessing his own team's performance, which he accepts was below par, he has also been poring over two incidents that caused him a great deal of anger and frustration. Much of his ire was directed at VAR, with Postecoglou adamant his side should have been awarded a penalty for handball against Rangers defender Connor Goldson and that referee John Beaton should have been called to the monitor for a second look. He has also expressed dismay at a missile-throwing incident after Celtic left-back Greg Taylor and the physio treating him were targeted by a metal object, believed to be a bottle opener, thrown from the crowd.

The Greek-Australian was not prepared to let either episode lie as he used his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's visit of Kilmarnock to point out that his side have been consistently on the wrong end of VAR decisions. “I don’t think it’s perception, I think that’s the reality," Postecoglou said. "We have had a rough run of it. You’d be hard-pressed to find me being too critical of any refereeing decision during my whole 25 years coaching. I’ve always felt that with human beings involved, errors will happen and things will even out over the course of the year. But if you look from the introduction of VAR, we’ve had some, I think, pretty rough decisions against us, and that’s not going to even itself out over one year: no chance are we going to get three [questionable] penalties in our favour.

“I think we have had some bad decisions in a short space of time. The biggest problem for me and my players at the moment is just confusion. You’ve got players who are trying to defend in the box not knowing what they can and can’t do. It seems to change on a weekly basis. I saw people doing mental gymnastics all week trying to figure out why it wasn’t a penalty. Maybe that’s because it was a penalty and there’s nothing to figure out. That's where it’s frustrating for supporters, not just of our club. That could be a decision that sends a club down, relegates them. If someone watching our game can clearly define to me with the decisions we’ve had so far what is a handball, without trying to justify decisions, I’d be very surprised. I think it’s a bit of a mess at the moment.”

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou takes a training session on Friday ahead of the match against Kilmarnock. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

Postecoglou also blasted the Ibrox missile-thrower, with a similar incident in the Edinburgh derby at Tynecastle resulting in Hearts goalkeeper Zander Clark requiring treatment to a head wound after being struck by a coin. "It's not something you want to see,” he continued. “We saw it in another Premiership game at the weekend and it’s just nonsense. People should know better these days. There are players out there putting their bodies on the line as it is; you don’t need that kind of stuff coming in over the fence. When you know that 99 per cent of the people in that stadium are doing the right thing, it’s sad that a couple seem to think that something like that would have an effect. Players are out there giving their all for their teams. Irrespective of which side you support, you should be able to support without doing stupid things like that.”