Andy Walker has called out Derek McInnes’ comment that Celtic’s penalty call against Motherwell was ‘disgusting’.
The comment was uttered by a hot-headed McInnes after his team were denied a clear path to the Scottish Premiership title by Kelechi Iheanacho’s final kick of the game at Fir Park.
It was in the heat of a title race, something that the ex-Hearts boss will need to get used to if he wants to be a success in his new role at Ibrox.
Walker rightly thinks there’s something to be said about how Celtic hunted their title rivals down under Martin O’Neill.
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Andy Walker to Derek McInnes: ‘It was controversial, not disgusting’
Walker said of McInnes on the Go Radio Football Show. “He’s never been in that position before, to be so close.
“Like him, I always thought that Hearts were favourites. At one point, I think they had an 11 or 13 point lead, allowing for Celtic and Rangers having games in hand.
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“I know there was a lot of controversy towards towards the end of the season, and that’s what it was. It was controversial.
“It wasn’t ‘disgusting’, the way that Derek McInnes referred to it. It was controversial.
“I think you get those controversial decisions throughout the season. But you have to learn to ride with these decisions and just get the job done.
“Get over the line. And Hearts, if you look at their results… the last seven away games, it just wasn’t good enough.
“And Celtic chased them down. Celtic got them in the end. That’s a bit of mentality. I think Martin O’Neill referred to it as the spirit of the players, the mentality of the players.
“They’ve done it before. I think there’s a lot to be said for that.”
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A tough few weeks for Hearts
Having led the race for 250 days, it’s fair to say that the defeat hit the Jambos hard. After the pitch invasion, they left the stadium still in their jerseys, without fulfilling their media duties.
Hearts then slated the referee’s decision to tend the game amid the invasion, only for this to backfire when VAR audio revealed that McInnes had communicated a willingness to stop the game.
Bloom has also claimed that Hearts players were assaulted by Celtic fans, but these accusations remain unproven.
To make matters even worse, both manager McInnes and captain Lawrence Shankland have now left them for Rangers.
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