Celtic defender Anthony Ralston has delivered the perfect response to questions surrounding if VAR will affect the Hoops fast-tempo play style.
Since the arrival of Ange Postecoglou last summer, the Bhoys have earned a reputation for their first tempo/paced style of play.
Whether that be when the ball is on or off the pitch, the Celtic starting 11 are always switched on and ready to get the game flowing right away.
This season, in particular, it has very much helped to Celtic’s advantage, with several sides not being able to cope due to the Hoops sharp focus throughout the 90 minutes.
Over the past weekend, Scottish Football welcomed the introduction of VAR, with Ange Postecoglou’s sides fixture against Hearts being one of the first games utilising the new technology.
It would be fair to say that the game didn’t take place without controversy surrounding the technology, with one of the negative points being how long it took for checks to be complete.
Some have questioned if this will affect Celtic’s fast-paced game as they look to catch opposition out as soon as the ball exits the play.
However, Celtic defender Anthony Ralston has issued the perfect response to those questions, insisting it won’t affect himself or his teammates.
He said [Sun Sport]: “Everything to do with VAR is outside noise to us; we’re just about focusing on the task at hand.
“The game never stops in our eyes, and that’s always a clear message we’ve got as a team — to keep going and to come away with nothing but the win.
“When the ball goes out for a throw-in, a corner, a VAR stoppage, whatever it may be, we just stay 100 per cent committed and focused at all times.
“The stoppages while they make decisions don’t affect me. And I think I can speak on behalf of the boys and say it won’t affect them either.
“Yes, we’re going to have to adapt because it’s in the game now, and that’s not going to change. But I don’t see it affecting us at all.”
Celtic must ignore ‘outside noise’ of VAR and continue to play their football as demonstrated vs Hearts.
The introduction of VAR was always bound to create a lot of controversies, and we saw that first-hand during our 4-3 win over Hearts on Saturday.
Ralston also felt the effects of the technology after having a perfectly good goal chopped off by referee Nick Walsh as Scottish officials prepare to grow accustomed to VAR.
Despite his inevitable frustrations of having his strike disallowed, Ralston has delivered the perfect response to any questions about how VAR might affect Celtic’s style of play under Ange Postecoglou.
All the talk of the new technology is simply ‘outside noise’ and outwith the control of the Celtic boss and his players. So, they must just focus on the task at hand and adapt to Scottish Football’s latest introduction.
Saturday’s win at Tynecastle was the ideal example of that, as the Bhoys pushed on to deliver all three points with an impressive 4-3 victory.
For Celtic, it is all about playing our football and nothing else, such as contentious refereeing decisions, which is the attitude that has been drilled into his players by Ange Postecoglou.
In other news, On-form Celtic star handed surprise provisional World Cup spot.
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