Though Rangers won 2-0, fans were not happy with some of the opinions expressed by Michael Stewart where he thought that the Gers had benefited from referee’s decisions.
Not surprisingly, the former Hibernian player received a barrage of criticism for his commentary on ViaPlay Sports 1 during Sunday’s Scottish Cup match.
It started on the 23rd minute of the match when Rangers were awarded a penalty when Dujon Sterling went down in the penalty box after a tackle from Jordan Obita. The penalty kick taken by James Tavernier was blocked by Hib’s keeper David Marshall but the rebound fell kindly to John Lundstram who reached the rebound first to put the ball in the net.
While VAR did not ask the referee to review his decision, commentator Michael Stewart disagreed with the referee and suggested that Sterling might have gone down too easily after he sensed the contact from Obita.
However, the most controversial take of yesterday’s game was when the 43-year-old former Manchester United midfielder disagreed with the red card given to Nathan Moriah Welsh after his rash challenge on John Lundstram.
He argued that despite it being a stupid tackle by Nathan Moriah, it could not be considered a red card. Unfortunately for him, the VAR was of another opinion and the second red card of the match was affirmed cutting the losing side to 9 men.
Such comments directed much hate and bashing towards Michael Stewart post the match on social media. This charge was led by ‘FOG Football’ a popular Youtube channel about the world of Scottish football on their video titled ‘MICHAEL STEWART IS A FUD!’
On Twitter many stated that Michael Stewart is bound to be biased because he is an ex Hibernian player.
Many also pointed to the fact that the former Scottish footballer also failed to qualify in the trial stage for Rangers F.C. and hence such unsavory commentary against Rangers is simply a result of his bitterness and jealousy towards the team.
On Reddit, many users fume over Michael Stewart’s denial for the red card when it was obvious that Moriah Welsh completely nailed Lundstrum with his right foot.
Others make joking remark that the commentator probably gets bonus based on the number of complaints he causes.
Controversies are not new to Michael Stewart. In 2020 he was suspended from BBC Radio Scotland for the comments he made against Rangers media officer James Traynor.
Michael later apologized publicly on Twitter for his comments. However, as a football pundit he has every right to express his honest opinion on the on field events and those need to be respected though one may not agree with him.
