Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - April 9, 2022. Celtic's Josip Juranovic celebrates scoring.
Celtic defender Josip Juranovic was blasted over his “shocking” defending in the Old Firm clash by Ally McCoist.
The Lowdown: Old Firm mistake
In the build-up to Rangers’ first goal in the Old Firm Derby, Bhoys defender Juranovic was caught out of position by Allan McGregor’s long goal kick to Fashion Sakala.
The Croatian wasn’t close to Sakala, who brought the ball down and fed Ryan Kent, who whipped in the equaliser expertly, bringing Ibrox and Rangers to life and undoing all of Celtic’s first-half work, with them entering the break 1-0 up thanks to a well-taken Daizen Maeda opener only five minutes in.
The Latest: McCoist reaction
In true McCoist fashion, he refused to hide his passion over the fixture as he berated Juranovic’s defending that cost the Bhoys their lead, saying on Sky Sports’ live coverage: “Juranovic’s start position is shocking. Take nothing away from the finish – Rangers want Kent on the ball. The finish is sublime.
“But boy oh boy, Juranovic’s starting position is terrible. Game on.”
The Verdict: Moment to forget
What a mistake to make on an occasion like this for a player whose future is currently uncertain at the club following his exploits at the World Cup.
Having started and featured in only two of the Bhoys’ previous 14 SPFL games amid his reluctance to commit his future at the club, Anthony Ralston had been handed a run in the side before new signing Alistair Johnston was picked from the start on Monday afternoon.
Introduced as a first-half substitute for the injured Greg Taylor, Juranovic therefore came in at left-back, but his mistake was in no way an excuse for playing out of position, with an experienced defender such as himself surely not expected to be so naïve in a game of this magnitude.
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