Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Bowman: I won’t say sorry Gers
DEFIANT Ryan Bowman won’t seek out Fabio Cardoso today to apologise for breaking his nose – as he accused the Rangers of overreacting to their stormy previous encounter.
The Motherwell striker is bracing himself for a hot reception when he steps out at Ibrox today, as the lingering bad blood from October’s League Cup semi-final threatens to boil over again.
Bowman was branded a thug in the wake of that 2-0 victory for Well at
Hampden after badly injuring Cardosa with his elbow as the pair clashed in an aerial challenge.
The fallout from that game even saw Motherwell compared to WWE wrestlers in the official matchday programme for Rangers’ next home game, while Cardoso posted pics of himself on social media to hit out at their physical style.
But Bowman – who admits he was hurt by the widespread condemnation – insists he won’t let that get to him today, and insists he has no reason to make peace with Cardoso.
He said: “Their reaction after that game is up to them. Cardoso was all over Instagram with his nose.
“It’s a physical sport, you’re going to get knocks.
“He’s a centre-half he’s not going to go through the game and not get touched.
“I’ve not spoken to him. This would be the first time I’ll see him on Wednesday but I don’t know if he’s playing much.
“I won’t seek him out before, I’ll treat it as a normal game. There’s no point going back to it and thinking about it again.”