Lennon’s Celts are left to rue lack of VAR

NEIL LENNON last night lamented the absence of VAR from the Europa League after Celtic were denied a penalty that could have delivered an opening Group E victory over Rennes. The Parkhead side produced an impressive performance to secure a 1-1 draw on a noisy and controversial night inside Roazhon Park, but Lennon departed feeling it could have been even better. Behind to a penalty conceded by Kristoffer Ajer in the first half, Celtic saw an obvious spot-kick waved away by Spanish referee Jose Maria Sanchez when Ryan Christie was toppled by Joris Gnagnon after 51 minutes. Christie then levelled after James Forrest won another penalty eight minutes later, before the Parkhead side ended with ten men after the debatable late dismissal of substitute Vakoun Issouf Bayo. Although VAR is already installed in the Champions League, it is not planned for the secondary competition until next season. ‘I was aware of that before the game,’ said Lennon. ‘We are playing under the UEFA banner. I’m surprised we don’t have it in this competition. ‘If we had had it, then it would have been clearly

another penalty. It’s a great start for us. But you always want more. ‘I’m not happy about the sending off and we should have had a clear penalty for the foul on Ryan Christie. ‘However, I have to be satisfied to come away from home and play very strongly against a good side. ‘It speaks volumes for the character and quality of the team. I thought we were the better team. ‘Their penalty is a penalty. There is no complaints on that. I asked for a reaction from the players at half-time and they thoroughly merited the point in the end, if not three points.’ Sanchez was an erratic figure for much of the match, with his final act coming with the dismissal of Bayo in the first minute of stoppage time. On for Odsonne Edouard in the 84th minute, the Ivorian striker earned a merited first booking for a crude aerial foul on Rennes captain Damien Da Silva. He was then given a second yellow card by Sanchez for a challenge on goalkeeper Edouard Mendy — despite the official initially seeming unconcerned. ‘It looked to me like the referee was waving play on,’ said Lennon. ‘I don’t know if he looked back at the goalkeeper as he was holding his head. ‘There was no contact with his face at all. If anything, it was minimal across his midriff. The referee changed his mind. Bayo can feel very hard done by.’ Despite those incidents, Lennon (pictured) took great satisfaction from Celtic having now lost just one of their last seven European away matches. With CFR Cluj recording a surprise victory over Lazio in Romania, Lennon’s men could take an early lead in the section by beating their Champions League conquerors in Glasgow on October 3. ‘It’s something we want to improve as we go along,’ said the Parkhead manager. ‘We’re unbeaten away in Europe this season. The system seems to suit them. ‘I think we have scored in every game away from home. It’s very pleasing and it gives us a nice foothold in the group. ‘The other result isn’t a surprise to me. Teams will take points off each other as the group goes on.’ Asked to single out key performers, Lennon added: ‘The two boys in midfield were brilliant — Callum McGregor and Ryan Christie. Christopher Jullien had an outstanding game as well. The rest of the team were compact and comfortable.’ One negative came with a second-half injury to Boli Bolingoli, who was replaced at left-back by Jonny Hayes. ‘He has got a slight abductor strain,’ added Lennon. ‘He felt it getting worse as the game went on. ‘He didn’t want to take too many chances. We will assess him tomorrow and he may be a doubt for the next few games.’ Christie, meanwhile, claimed Sanchez was swayed by the passionate home crowd. ‘There was a sense of frustration,’ said the Scotland international. ‘I don’t envy the referee’s job, especially in that atmosphere where the fans are shouting for every decision. ‘It felt like we were treading on egg shells in the last ten minutes because any tackle he was going to reach for the red card. ‘I’m gutted for Bayo. He came on to try to make an impact and hold the ball up for us. The first one was a booking but the second one was beyond soft. ‘With my penalty claim, it was a strange one. If it’s not a penalty, then he had to book me but he awarded a throw in. ‘It didn’t make much sense. I was even questioning myself but when I saw it again in the dressing room it was a definite penalty.’