Stephen Kelly was completely shocked at one VAR decision given against Celtic yesterday

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Celtic’s VAR controversy has made headline news south of the border as well, it seems.

We have already told how Jeff Stelling reckons we will see more red cards in the final two Glasgow Derby matches of the season because of what he saw at Tynecastle.

We have also heard how Chris Sutton believes that referees are just ‘guessing’ big handball calls after Celtic midfielder, Tomoki Iwata, was penalised yesterday afternoon.

And now it’s the turn of former Spurs defender, Stephen Kelly. The former Republic of Ireland international was left utterly bemused by both VAR calls yesterday but seemed to take more of an issue with the penalty call against Celtic’s Japanese star.

Kelly said [Football Daily], “I’m not sure if you’ve seen the penalty. The penalty is just ridiculous. I actually don’t know how they’ve given it.

“I’m looking at it going, ‘No one in their right mind would give that as a penalty.’

“The balls just dropped and hit him in the arm. And there are three players in a really tight area. The balls coming down, but there’s no movement towards it.

“It’s just literally hit his arm which is against his body. I can’t understand for the life of me how it is given. I don’t understand it.

“And the ref goes and gives it and then they go to lose the game. But the sending-off is one that a high foot is dangerous play in the letter of the law that could have been a sending-off.

“The penalty is ridiculous.”

It’s only Monday and the headlines are consumed with this and, hopefully, this will put pressure on the SFA to act.

It’s not just Celtic who are suffering from this. There are clubs all over the SPFL who are having to put up with substandard refereeing and VAR decisions and it could be the difference between European qualification or relegation.

From a Celtic point of view, however, there is £60m riding on this title. And if the difference is a VAR or refereeing decision that costs the club that vast sum of cash, you would have to imagine that the board would take it up with the game’s governing body.

In other news, Brendan Rodgers shares what he told Don Robertson in the tunnel straight after Celtic’s loss to Hearts