Chris Sutton has admitted that Alfredo Morelos' disallowed goal against Celtic on Saturday was "harsh", but he believes the reaction from Rangers, as a result, has been "desperate".
The Ibrox club wrote a letter to the SFA to seek answers after they were denied the opening goal in the derby fixture at the weekend after referee Kevin Clancy adjudged Morelos to have fouled Alistair Johnston before poking the ball into the back of the net.
Sutton can see why Rangers were upset about the call, but he feels the reaction has been over the top, as he urged Michael Beale's side to knuckle down ahead of the Scottish Cup semi-final at the end of the month.
He wrote in the Daily Record: "I understand Michael Beale and James Tavernier have to sell some kind of story. This time it was ‘we played well and deserved something from the game if it wasn’t for some dodgy decisions by the ref and a couple of errors’.
"I get that. The Alfredo Morelos effort ruled out was harsh but it was a 50/50 call and not deemed to be a clear and obvious error by the VAR officials.
"But that was the first real chance they’d had in the game. There was a penalty call in the second half as well, but that would have been soft if it had been awarded too.
"I do think Celtic need to be careful with the wrestling in the box. Carl Starfelt got punished for it against Hibs and there were a few instances against Rangers they were running the risk.
"I didn’t quite get Beale’s complaining about handball from Jota for the second. It didn’t hit his hand and even if it did it would have been accidental and not from the goalscorer, so the rules would have allowed it anyway.
"It was a little bit desperate and perhaps some deflection. They can write all the letters to the SFA they like but look at all the stats. Celtic had more possession, more chances, more shots on goal, more corners, Allan McGregor had more saves to make.
"It was a close game but can anyone really say Rangers did enough to win it? I’m not even sure Rangers fans would believe that."
