Hearts boss Derek McInnes was left furious with the decision to award Celtic a last-gasp penalty in their win at Motherwell — branding it ‘disgusting’.
On a night of incredible drama and controversy in the title race, it was Celtic who pilfered three points at Fir Park after Kelechi Iheanacho scored a 99th-minute penalty.
That now tees up the prospect of a final-day shootout between the top two at Parkhead on Saturday, with Hearts knowing they need to avoid defeat in order to finish as champions.
But they almost had one hand on the trophy last night, cruising to a 3-0 win over Falkirk at Tynecastle whilst Celtic looked set to drop points at Motherwell.
That was until referee John Beaton was sent to the monitor by VAR Andrew Dallas to make a judgment on a clash between Motherwell’s Sam Nicholson and Celtic defender Auston Trusty.
With the match poised at 2-2, Beaton made the call that Nicholson had handled the ball even though the replays looked inconclusive at best.
McInnes said it felt like ‘us against everybody’ after hearing of Celtic controversial award
It was a moment of huge controversy — one former England striker Gary Lineker labelled ‘the worst VAR decision I’ve ever seen’ — with Iheanacho scoring the penalty to snatch all three points for Celtic.
McInnes, who saw his side denied two decent penalty shouts in their 1-1 draw at Motherwell last weekend, was fuming.
‘I heard there was a late penalty in the 96th minute — I didn’t need to ask who for,’ said the Hearts manager. ‘You just assume they are getting it.
‘It’s disgusting. We’re up against everybody. I don’t think it’s a penalty.
‘If I’m Motherwell, I’m really disappointed. It’s so poor and it looks as though [Celtic] have been given it. They are very fortunate.
‘I shouldn’t be commenting on another game, but I knew I was going to get asked the question. And having seen that, it feels like us against everybody.
‘When you see the two that we didn’t get at the weekend and then you see that, how they can arrive at that situation [is beyond me].
‘Celtic have, I’m sure, more than a touch of fortune at getting that penalty. But I’m getting more and more dismayed at some of the decisions that our referees are coming up with. It’s such a bad decision.
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‘Motherwell must feel totally aggrieved about it. I don’t see anything… I had to keep looking at it. I thought I was missing something when I was watching it.
‘I had to ask, what am I looking for here? It’s actually quite disgusting, to be honest. It feels like us against everybody.’
On social media, Lineker wrote: ‘This might be the worst VAR decision I’ve seen. Extraordinary given the significance.’
On a night of incredible drama in Scottish football, it looked like Hearts would be on the brink of winning the league title.
A routine 3-0 victory over Falkirk, coupled with Celtic toiling to a 2-2 draw in the closing stages away at Motherwell, looked like it was set to inch Hearts ever closer.
Had results stayed that way, they would have taken a three-point lead to Glasgow on Saturday as well as being six goals better off.
Seeking to win the club’s first league title in 66 years, Hearts now know they must avoid defeat at Celtic Park if they are to finish as champions.
It tees up a mouth-watering final-day showdown between McInnes and Martin O’Neill as this season’s title race reaches its conclusion.
Asked if he and his players can use the sense of injustice as motivation on Saturday, McInnes said: ‘Yeah, of course. And it will be like that.
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‘You’re going into 60,000. The place will be rocking. And we’ll look forward to it once it comes along.
‘I think for us, that type of game, that type of stage, we deserve that and we’ll look forward to it. We’re not going to shy away from it.
‘We’ve got a good record against Celtic. We know a point will do us. And I think at some point in the game, if that is the case, with 10, 15 minutes to go, then that might play a part. But certainly not for the start.
‘It’s going to the last game. We’re delighted to be part of it. To do it, we’re going to have to go and get a positive result. What a game it’s going to be.’
