Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has weighed in on the controversial red card shown to Motherwell defender Emmanuel Longelo during Celtic’s 3–1 win at Celtic Park on March 14, 2026 — and in his view, the officials got it absolutely right.
Speaking on Sky Sports’ Ref Watch, Gallagher supported referee John Beaton and the VAR team for the decision that proved to be a turning point in the match during the 71st minute.
Initially, Longelo escaped punishment when he appeared to pull down Celtic forward Daizen Maeda inside the penalty area, with Beaton first awarding a goal kick. However, VAR official Kevin Clancy advised the referee to review the incident on the pitchside monitor. After taking another look, Beaton changed his decision, awarding Celtic a penalty and showing Longelo a straight red card.
Gallagher said VAR played its role perfectly in helping the referee correct the call.
According to him, the key factor was that Longelo made no genuine attempt to play the ball.
He explained that the ball was nowhere near the defender and that the challenge simply involved dragging Maeda to the ground. Under the current laws of the game, Gallagher said that situation clearly qualifies as denying a goalscoring opportunity, which automatically results in both a penalty and a red card.
To further explain the rule, Gallagher referenced a well-known incident involving former Celtic captain Virgil van Dijk during his time at Liverpool. In a similar situation against Tottenham’s Richarlison, the Dutch defender was judged under the same principle — when a player pulls an opponent down without trying to play the ball, the punishment is unavoidable.
Gallagher did admit he was surprised that Beaton did not spot the foul immediately, pointing out that the referee appeared to have a clear view of the incident from his position. Nevertheless, he said the review process worked exactly as intended and ultimately led to the correct outcome.
Celtic took full advantage of the decision. Tomas Cvancara converted the penalty to put the Hoops 2–1 ahead after Motherwell had briefly led through Elijah Just. The home side later added another goal to secure a comfortable 3–1 victory and keep their Premiership title push firmly on track.
The match also sparked another debate earlier in the game. Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou questioned why VAR did not intervene during a challenge by Celtic’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on Just, which only resulted in a yellow card. Some pundits, including James McFadden, suggested the tackle could have deserved a harsher punishment.
Despite that discussion, Gallagher’s analysis has largely settled the debate around the red card incident. In his view, the decision was clear-cut — no attempt to play the ball meant the referee had no choice but to send Longelo off.