Hearts manager makes bizarre claim about red cards vs Celtic

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 02: Hearts manager Robbie Neilson reacts during the Cinch Scottish Premiership match between Celtic FC and Heart of Midlothian at on December 02, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 02: Hearts manager Robbie Neilson reacts during the Cinch Scottish Premiership match between Celtic FC and Heart of Midlothian at on December 02, 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Celtic were not at their blistering best against Hearts at Parkhead, but Ange Postecoglou’s side were more than good enough to get a 2-0 win and all three points on the day. Kyogo Furuhashi and Giorgos Giakoumakis continued their great run of form, by finding the back of the net. The win meant that the Hoops are now two points clear off the Rangers, who could only manage a 2-2 draw vs Hibernian.

On the other hand, in a curious repeat of yesterday, when the Rangers got two of their players sent off against Hibernian, Hearts were shown two red cards on the day as well. Alex Cochrane and Toby Sibbick were given their marching orders late on in the game.

Now, they did seem like pretty straightforward decisions for the referee. On the other hand though, one would not expect the manager of a club on the receiving end of two red cards to agree with the sending offs. That is natural.

Interestingly though, Hearts manager, Robbie Neilson, felt that his side were in ‘a good position’, before the red cards. As reported by 67 Hail Hail, he told BBC Radio Scotland:

"“Until the referee sends two of our players off, we’re still in the game and in a good position, but once that happens, it makes it very difficult.“You hope that an experienced referee would recognise the situation. The first one, there’s no need for a second yellow card. It’s the linesman who makes the decision.“The ball isn’t in an area where it’s causing problems, it’s not reckless, it’s not endangering a player. Sometimes, when the crowd roars you can jump on it and I think that is potentially what happened today.”"

Hearts manager makes bizarre claim about the two red cards vs Celtic

Just for context, the first red card was shown in the 89th minute of the game and the second had been shown in the 91st. Celtic had been up a goal to nil from the 13th minute, thanks to Kyogo’s strike.

Now, while Hearts did have a chance to somehow pinch a point out of the game, one has to remember that they did not have a single shot on target on the day. Not exactly a good position.

For Celtic, it should not matter how they got it done, as long as they got the job done and came out with the full points.

light. Must Read. Journalist makes £20 million claim about Celtic target