Celtic’s dramatic 2-1 victory over Dundee hinged on a handful of decisive moments.
For long spells, the Hoops looked flat and appeared destined to suffer a shock exit as the clock ticked down. That all changed with the final touch of regulation time, when Junior Adamu marked his debut with a crucial equaliser. From there, momentum swung firmly Celtic’s way, and Sebastian Tounekti sealed the win in extra time after a much-improved display.
However, the tie might never have reached that stage had one key refereeing call gone differently earlier in the match, particularly an incident involving Tomas Cvancara.
Pundits believe Celtic were denied a spot kick
During the first half, Dundee defender Luke Graham was penalised for pushing Cvancara, but the foul was given just outside the penalty area. Immediate replays raised doubts over whether the contact actually continued into the box.
VAR reviewed the incident and backed the original decision, but that verdict left TV analysts Charlie Mulgrew and former Dundee manager Tony Docherty unconvinced. Both felt Celtic were hard done by and criticised how quickly the check was dismissed.
Mulgrew said: “For me, that should be a penalty. The contact might start outside the area, but the law says if it carries on into the box, it counts. There’s clearly a push, and it’s right on the line. If it’s on the line, it’s a penalty. I don’t understand why the referee hasn’t taken another look.”
Docherty agreed, adding: “There’s definitely a case for a penalty there. I remember a similar incident involving Hearts against Dundee United, where the contact began outside but finished inside the area, and it was given. This one was dealt with very quickly, and I think Dundee were fortunate.”
Mulgrew doubled down on his view, saying he could not see how VAR reached its conclusion. “You can clearly see contact inside the box. It starts outside, continues inside. For me, it’s a clear penalty.”
Why VAR backed the on-field call
VAR later explained its reasoning, stating that the referee’s decision was upheld because the push was judged to have begun outside the penalty area. Officials added that fouls involving pushing are punished at the point of initial contact.
They clarified that a different outcome might have followed if the incident had involved holding inside the box, which would have resulted in a penalty being awarded.
That explanation did little to ease the frustration of those who felt Celtic were denied a major decision on the day.