NafisaCharlie Mulgrew couldn’t resist dragging Rangers into the conversation after Celtic were controversially awarded a late penalty against Motherwell on Wednesday night.
The Gers were also in action during midweek, suffering a 2-1 defeat at Ibrox in a fixture that carried little significance for the home side.
Most attention across the Scottish Premiership was firmly focused on the top two, with Hearts moving closer and closer to lifting the title for the first time since 1960.
A Celtic draw would have left the Edinburgh club with one hand on the trophy, but a dramatic late Kelechi Iheanacho penalty secured all three points for the Hoops.
John Beaton awarded the contentious penalty against Sam Nicholson, prompting Mulgrew to strangely connect the incident back to Rangers.
Charlie Mulgrew gives mixed verdict on John Beaton after Celtic penalty drama:
The title race is now heading for a dramatic finish with only one point separating the sides heading into the final match — ironically against each other.
Things may have turned out differently had Motherwell converted their opportunities and avoided allowing a late decision to completely alter the outcome.
There has been huge debate surrounding the penalty award and whether Nicholson actually handled the ball inside the area.
There remains a shortage of fully conclusive footage, but that did not prevent referee Beaton from taking only around 20 seconds before arriving at a massive decision.
Many have criticised the call and questioned the integrity of the decision-making process, but Mulgrew bizarrely defended the official because of his supposed Ibrox connections.
Speaking on talkSPORT, the former Celtic defender said: “I think it ticks a lot of boxes for John Beaton. Now, John Beaton is of the Rangers persuasion, and he’s been known to be a Rangers fan in Scotland.
“He’s been sent to the monitor, and if there’s one guy who’s going to say what he sees, it’s John Beaton. I don’t believe John Beaton is going to say anything other than what he’s seen.”
Rangers had lost to Hibernian while this decision unfolded, making the constant references to them feel strange, even if the official has not always been popular among Celtic supporters.
Why is Mulgrew bringing up claims that Beaton supports Rangers?
It says plenty that the 40-year-old is still referencing a decision from more than a decade ago while attempting to justify a hugely controversial call that ultimately benefited Celtic.
Fans were quickly reminded of the controversy surrounding Rangers’ 1-0 Old Firm victory at Ibrox back in December 2018.
Following that match, Celtic argued that Beaton showed bias after deciding against sending off Alfredo Morelos, leading to an official complaint from the Hoops.
However, critics pointed out that Celtic supporters conveniently ignored moments where Scott Brown escaped a red card following a shin-high tackle on Daniel Candeias, along with a goal-saving handball incident that also went unpunished.
It appears those memories still remain fresh in Mulgrew’s thinking, despite the incident at Fir Park having absolutely nothing to do with Rangers.
Nafisa
