Ibrox side Glasgow Rangers were beaten 2-0 at the weekend, with Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers an interested spectator.
Rangers took on Motherwell at Hampden Park on Sunday, and the two sides played out a very physical contest.
Both sides were guilty of putting in some fierce challenges during the match, and Rogers felt that both Rangers and Motherwell could have had men sent off.
“The centre half (Cardoso) came off the pitch on Sunday – Christ, if he’d been shot, he wouldn’t have looked worse. It was unbelievable,” Rodgers said.
“I don’t know what happened with (Louis) Moult [when he was elbowed by Cardoso] but that’s down to control as well. That’s control of the game. If, anywhere in the world, you do anything like that, then you’re off straight away.
“There was an incident where Bruno Alves didn’t even get spoken to. The referee was four yards away. That shows officials were affected in the game.
“It’s the welfare of players you are looking at. How that game on Sunday ended up with 11 against 11, I will never know.”
Rangers defender Bruno Alves came out after the match to criticise Motherwell’s tactics, but they did prove to be effective.
Rangers could not pick up a victory to make it through to the final to take on Celtic, with Motherwell causing an upset.
Louis Moult scored twice for Steven Robinson’s side, as they picked up an impressive victory.
Rangers will now attempt to get back to winning ways tomorrow evening, when they face St. Johnstone in Scottish Premiership action.
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