The Media Has Already Given Us A Hint Of What Celtic Fans Can Expect This Season.

Yesterday we were denied what I thought, at the game, was a stonewall penalty when Reo Hatate was taken down in the box with the game still finely balanced at 1-0.

It looked like a shocking decision, and made worse by the fact that the stand-side linesman – who’s view it was probably better than that of the ref – had an absolute shocker and allowed all manner of stuff to happen on his side of the pitch.

But it wasn’t a penalty, as I saw later on when I got home and watched it again.

Had it been given it would have been pretty harsh. We should give officials credit when they get these right. And we should be forever highlighting what they get wrong.

One decision is being highlighted in the press today; the offside decision that went against Ibrox.

As per usual, we’re being subjected to the latest chatter about how VAR would have made a difference. You would sometimes think its introduction is viewed as something for the benefit of only one club, and in the eyes of the press that ain’t us.

But watching that decision yesterday at our ground, although I later noted that the ref got it right, I remain convinced that we will be a net beneficiary of VAR, because no matter how much officials might not want to give decisions like that in the moment, calling them over and showing them the footage will make some of them think twice about turning the obvious ones down.

I was not surprised that the press is focussed on the decision at Livingston, a decision which I actually thought was a pretty good one. I think he strayed just offside and that VAR would have borne that out.

But already the echoes of last season can be heard, and not just in that but in Jim Goodwin’s comments about the corner they should have had being highlighted as proof that perhaps Jota’s goal shouldn’t have stood.

Last season, every single decision which went our way was subjected to the kind of scrutiny only a CCTV clip of a murder would get. Hacks and Ibrox fan media sites were toting up the points we “could” have lost and the ones they “could” have won … and this week in, week out, no matter how comprehensively we beat people.

You can already see that this will be similar. VAR will be introduced at some point, and that should shut a lot of people up … but until it does, it’s all going to become achingly familiar.