Mark Clattenburg addresses controversy over Camilo Duran’s disallowed Celtic goal

Camilo Duran had found the net in every Celtic match since being used as a striker before Saturday’s trip to St Mirren, but his impressive scoring run appeared to continue only for his goal to be ruled out for offside.

St Mirren took the lead from the penalty spot in the 22nd minute in Paisley, with Celtic seemingly responding almost immediately through Duran. However, the goal was disallowed for offside despite replays appearing to suggest the striker may have been level.

Sky Sports also highlighted how the decision looked questionable from the initial viewing, while former Celtic defender Jackie McNamara expressed doubts over the call.

Former top-flight referee Mark Clattenburg has now offered his assessment, insisting that supporters have to trust both the match officials and the technology when dealing with such marginal decisions.

Clattenburg explained that Duran appeared to be ahead of the ball and potentially had a small part of his body beyond the second-last defender.

He acknowledged that it was an extremely tight call but stressed that offside is a factual decision, meaning even the smallest margin can result in a player being deemed offside.

The former referee also pointed to the lack of tolerance given to attackers when these decisions are made, arguing that there is no allowance for the benefit of the doubt if a player is technically ahead.

The controversy continued late in the game when Shim Mheuka appeared to score a third for Celtic in stoppage time.

The Chelsea loanee broke through, went past the goalkeeper and found the net, with the assistant referee initially keeping his flag down. However, VAR instructed the referee to review the incident.

Unlike Duran’s goal, no offside lines were drawn during the review. The referee ultimately relied on the available view and decided that Mheuka had been offside, meaning Celtic had to settle for a 2-1 victory.

The contrasting decisions have understandably raised questions among Celtic supporters, particularly because Mheuka’s goal was overturned despite the assistant referee not initially flagging for offside and no clear VAR lines being shown.

For fans, it highlights the frustration surrounding marginal VAR decisions and the uncertainty that can arise when there does not appear to be conclusive visual evidence.