The Scottish FA’s head of referees, Willie Collum, has admitted Celtic deserved a penalty in their loss to Hibs.
Collum believes the decision not to award a spot-kick should have been reviewed on the field.
David Gray’s side triumphed 2-1 at Parkhead, extending their lead over Celtic rivals Hearts.
However, Celtic might feel aggrieved after Collum’s admission that Jack Iredale’s pull on Liam Scales should have resulted in a penalty.
This incident occurred shortly after Auston Trusty’s dismissal and with the score level at 1-1.
Trusty was sent off for lashing out at Jamie McGrath.
Felix Passlack had earlier put the visitors ahead but Benjamin Nygren equalised just before half-time.
Celtic’s hopes of a late winner were dashed by Kai Andrews’ winning strike for Hibs.
At the time, Celtic argued that they should have been awarded a penalty for Iredale’s grab on Scales following a corner.
Collum acknowledges that this was an oversight and should have been a penalty.
He explained: “The VAR described the action of the holding and proximity to the ball’s path.
“For us, this should be a penalty kick and an on-field review for a penalty.”
Collum continued: “There was excessive holding and impact.”
This clearly shows the holding and impact, and it’s sustained for a while. It should have been a penalty kick.
Host Gordon Duncan pointed out that the VAR team initially seemed to build a strong case for a penalty but then backed away from it.
The referee boss further criticised the team for lacking clarity.
Collum said: “If they’d gone to on-field review after their assessment, it would have been a great example of clear criteria.
“However, we need criteria.
“We’ve informed the VAR teams and the on-field referee that “not enough” isn’t a satisfactory description.
“They need to explain why they believe it’s not a penalty.”
As a result, Celtic fell behind in the title race.