Martin O’Neill has revealed what he was informed by match official Matthew MacDermid regarding Auston Trusty’s dismissal in a costly 2-1 defeat to Hibs.
The Hibees struck on either side of the interval through Felix Passlack and Kai Andrews, wiping out Benjamin Nygren’s equaliser before half-time and dealing a blow to Premiership title hopes at Parkhead.
They sit third, six points adrift of Hearts with a match in hand, while Motherwell are fourth having played the same number of fixtures, just four behind with two still to face the reigning champions.
Following a VAR check, Trusty was dismissed after a clash with Hibs’ Jamie McGrath, coming less than a month after his debated red card against Hearts for denying a clear goalscoring chance.
O’Neill has questioned the decision after speaking with referee MacDermid and also believed Liam Scales had grounds for a penalty after appearing to be pulled back by the shirt.
What did referee say about Auston Trusty sending off for Celtic vs Hibs?
He said on Sportsound: “I thought we were absolutely terrific, particularly in the first half. We dominated possession, we go a goal goal behind to a breakaway, and we got a late first half equaliser. We certainly deserved that. We deserved to be in front, we missed a couple of great chances to do that. Players put heart and soul into the game, so I’ve got no complaints on that side whatsoever.
“I can only go with what the referee told me. The referee said that he was, first of all, looking at the incident that he was just going to have a word with the two players. Then VAR has intervened to say that it was violent conduct, so the player gets a red card. If that’s it, then that’s the rules.
“I thought it looked pretty harsh, considering that the player was holding on to Trusty. Then a couple of minutes later, we had a really good claim for a penalty kick as well, when Scales has been held in the penalty area. Shirt has been tugged and it’s not given.
Martin O’Neill on Celtic 1-2 Hibs
“It’s not going to change anything now. We’ve lost the game at the end of it all and decisions during the course of the season happen. It’s one of those things. Trusty knows that you shouldn’t be digging down on players if that’s the case.
“It seemed rather harsh, considering he was the one being held. However, as I said, in terms of performance, in terms of heart and soul going into the game, I have no complaints whatsoever. We’re still in the title race.
“Confidence is something that if you’re 15 points clear, then you can be confident in something. We can still chase it down. That’s the point. We’ve been chasing for endless months now. There isn’t much room for error but we can still fight back. That’s the nature of the game, we had this sort of congested fixture list simply because we’d qualified for the knockout stages of the Europa League. That’s to be commended as much as anything else.”