Celtic fans questioned Madden’s handling of a key incident
Bobby Madden has sent a message to fans criticising his handling of Saturday’s derby at Ibrox.
The referee sent off Nir Bitton after 62 minutes, with the stand-in Celtic defender adjudged to have denied Alfredo Morelos a clear goalscoring opportunity.
It was another incident involving Morelos, however, that generated the most controversy during a typically feisty derby.
The Rangers striker became embroiled in a confrontation with Celtic captain Scott Brown, and was shown a yellow card by Madden.
Some Celtic fans questioned Madden’s choice to hold the Colombian back as tempers frayed.
Rangers fans insisted that this was fairly standard behaviour for referees attempting to calm players down, and that’s the message Madden delivered in an Instagram post on Sunday morning.
Madden surrounded a picture of him restraining Morelos with six other images of him acting similarly in Scottish matches.
His post was accompanied by the caption: “Starting my 11th year in the premier league in the thick of the action during one of world football’s great derbies.”
Rangers capitalised on their one-man advantage within eight minutes of Bitton’s dismissal, with Callum McGregor inadvertently directing a corner into his own net for the game’s only goal.
The result leaves Rangers 19 points ahead of their rivals, having won 20 of their first 22 Premiership matches.
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