BRENDAN Rodgers insisted last night that Willie Collum’s late penalty award which allowed Celtic to escape Lanarkshire with their 66-match invincible domestic record intact was the correct decision – and he never doubted that Scott Sinclair would be able to convert it.
We were into the 88th minute with the home side leading by virtue of a Mikael Lustig own goal by the time Andy Rose collided with Callum McGregor in the penalty area as the Scotland midfielder attempted to recover the ball after a stunning double save from Trevor Carson.
Rose and his team-mates protested vehemently that McGregor had instigated the contact but Sinclair, jeered remorselessly all night by the home fans for winning what the Motherwell side felt was an equally soft penalty during Sunday’s BetFred Cup final, made light of any controversy when he swept the ball high into the goalkeeper’s right hand corner.
Read more: Motherwell 1 Celtic 1: More penalty drama as Scott Sinclair returns to haunt Motherwell again
“Motherwell have been angry with a lot since the weekend, they have been angry about everything,” said Rodgers. “Their keeper makes a great save, it rebounds out and their player makes an attempt to get the ball. Callum steps in front, gets his body there and he [Rose] knocks him over. If you look at the referee, he’s in a perfect position to see it. I thought it was a penalty but when you are the opposition, you probably think it’s not.
“But if there is a penalty to be taken in that situation, then Scott will take it," he added. "I have seen him do it in front of 90,000 people at Wembley for Swansea in a play-off final. That is a £100million game and he never budged – he was calm and composed. Whether it’s in front of 9000 or 90,000, I’d always back him to score. He was straight on to it and finished it every well.”
The second part of an intriguing three-match series in the space of a week, the drama now rolls over to Celtic Park on Saturday afternoon. But Rodgers, who said that Patrick Roberts would get a scan after aggravating a hamstring injury, said last night that he could not be more proud of his players.
Read more: Motherwell's Andy Rose accuses Celtic's Callum McGregor of "flopping over" to win late penalty
“It was a really good game,” said the Northern Irishman. “Niggly at times but nothing more than that. You have to get massive credit to the Motherwell keeper. I knew Trevor as a young guy and he was outstanding. Then I lost track of him a bit but he made some great saves.
"We should have been more clinical in the game but in saying that, when you go behind away from home against a tough team, it’s always difficult," he added. "But credit to the team – it was a good point for us. You see why the players have achieved what they have and why it is really special. You can lose a game of football for so many reasons. Questions were asked but I couldn’t be any more proud of the players as they continually answer questions and show their mentality.”
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