VAR official relieved of duties after Celtic and Rangers errors as Willie Collum wields axe

A VAR official at the centre of high-profile errors involving Celtic and Rangers has been taken off duty permanently.

According to reports, Alan Muir will no longer serve as a specialist video assistant referee with the Scottish FA following crisis talks with head of refereeing Willie Collum and VAR chief Martin Atkinson.

Muir has been sidelined since wrongly disallowing a Celtic goal against Hibs at Easter Road on February 22 when incorrectly ruling that the ball had gone out of play before Daizen Maeda netted.

Alan Muir will no longer serve as a specialist VAR official with the Scottish FA. (Photo by Rob Casey / SNS Group) | SNS Group

The decision was addressed by Collum last month when he told the VAR Review Show that there was no "100 per cent conclusive evidence" that the ball had crossed the byline, adding: "We expect the on-field decision to be supported and a goal awarded."

Muir was also at fault for missing a Rangers penalty award in the Premier Sports Cup final in December when he failed to spot that a foul on Vaclav Cerny by Celtic's Liam Scales had taken place on the 18-yard line after referee John Beaton had awarded a free-kick on the edge on the box.

Collum branded the oversight "unacceptable" and admitted that Muir and assistant VAR Frank Connor were "not forensic enough" after Celtic went on to lift the trophy on penalties.

Muir, a former category one referee, was promoted to a VAR specialist role last summer alongside Andrew Dallas and Greg Aitken but a mutual decision has been reached for him to step down.

It is understood that Muir will remain with the SFA as a referee's observer.