CELTIC tongiht described the decision not to punish Rangers defender Jon Flanagan for elbowing Scott Brown in the Old Firm game on Sunday as an “embarrassment for Scottish football”.
Flanagan was only yellow carded by referee Kevin Clancy after catching Celtic captain Brown in the Rangers penalty box as Callum McGregor prepared to take a corner.
But SFA compliance officer Clare Whyte issued the English left back with a fast track notice of complaint on Tuesday.
A hearing at Hampden this morning cleared the former Liverpool player and he will be free to face Kilmarnock in the Ladbrokes Premiership game at Rugby Park on Sunday.
However, Celtic, who will be presented with the Premiership trophy after their final league game against Hearts on Sunday, took a dim view of the decision.
A Parkhead spokesperson said: “This whole matter is a huge embarrassment for Scottish football”
Meanwhile, Rangers, who had been scathing about the decision to cite Flanagan, who was facing a two game ban, expressed their happiness at the outcome.
“Obviously we have concerns about the process, but we are happy that the correct decision has been upheld," an Ibrox spokesman said.
The Govan side voiced their concerns over the controversial system that saw Flanagan cited earlier this week.
The Flanagan outcome is a major boost for Rangers ahead of their trip to Ayrshire as the 26-year-old is now able to feature.
Steven Gerrard's men are bidding to record a seventh consecutive league win.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here