Rangers v Livingston penalty decision: Former Celtic striker Chris Sutton makes pointed post - pundits left at odds

Scottish football pundits are split over the decision not to award Livingston a penalty during their 1-0 defeat by Rangers at Ibrox.

Livingston wanted a penalty at Ibrox for a potential handball incident.

Livingston players claimed vociferously for a spot-kick after Alex Lowry diverted a Jack Fitzwater header back to his goalkeeper Allan McGregor. Referee Don Robertson was unmoved.

BBC pundit Michael Stewart didn’t believe the Lions should have been awarded a penalty, saying: “ I think it would have been extremely harsh to give this as a penalty kick.

“He’s at the back post and it looks like it has come off his chest and back into Allan McGregor’s arms.

“The difficulty for the referee is he doesn’t see it at all because he’s blocked by a number of players between himself and the ball.

“For me, Alex Lowry leans in with his chest and it hits his chest.

“I don’t think his arm is at any point in contact with the ball. For me it is not a penalty kick.”

However, former Celtic striker Sutton – now a mainstream pundit – took to Twitter sarcastically and wrote with a caption of the incident: “He nearly caught it (two laughing emojis), never a penalty.”

The 1-0 win maintains Rangers’ four-point lead over Celtic at the top of the cinch Premiership.

Don't miss out on a 30 per cent discount on an annual sports subscription. We have a special offer throughout January where you can get a reduced package. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions/sports for more details.