Kyogo Furuhashi might be the man of the moment at Celtic Park but Rangers fans have been calling out double standards when it comes to reportage of the striker.
For the second week in a row, the Japanese international has been spotted diving in an attempt to get a rival player sent off.
Whilst the clash with Livingston defender Ayo Obileye certainly had something in it – if not enough for Kyogo Furuhashi to go down like he’d been shot – a clash in Celtic’s 4-2 win over Dundee paints another picture.
The 26-year-old striker goes looking for contact in the Dundee box and then goes down in the most blatant act of simulation we’re likely to see this season.
For Rangers fans fed up with biased coverage they’re asking why the striker isn’t being held to account by the usual suspects in the Scottish press.
Rangers have just had several weeks of manic refereeing conspiracies aplenty whilst supporters are well-used to witch hunts against Colombian striker Alfredo Morelos.
Think ex-Celtic star Alan Brazil labelling the striker a “cheat” or Bill Leckie referring to him as a diving “waster”.
That’s before we talk about any of the many Chris Sutton rants on the forward, including this one where he claims Rangers “intimidate” referees into keeping the striker on the pitch.
This is all retrospective and not only does it put pressure on referees, but these are narratives that stoke tensions and discolour Scottish football media.
However, what’s good enough for the goose, is good enough for the gander.
Rangers fans call out Celtic star Kyogo Furuhashi for diving
Fans certainly believe that had Gers forward Morelos been involved in such an incident we’d have reams of complaints whilst outspoken voices on social media would be applying pressure to get him banned.
This happened with retrospective punishment several times last season as incidents were blown out of all proportion and Morelos was demonised by members of the press.
Rangers fans have taken to Twitter to point to these double standards as they ask why Kyogo Furuhashi hasn’t quite been subject to the same treatment:
https://twitter.com/nosteviesouness/status/1457376213853409280
https://twitter.com/RobCharbour55/status/1457338861655248897
https://twitter.com/Arealrangersda/status/1457439697798672389
https://twitter.com/weluvyourangers/status/1457405763278811142
https://twitter.com/RuaridhHarry/status/1457392107900051459
Not that everyone has missed the striker’s infantile diving over the last fortnight – Rangers legend Ally McCoist sarcastically alluded to it in a clip which took place before the Dundee dive.
Rangers fans are obviously determined to highlight these incidents and when compared against our own players, many believe standards in the press are often radically different.
Celtic would defeat Dundee 4-2 at Dens Park with Rangers netting the same score line against Ross County later in the day to maintain their four-point lead in the Scottish Premiership.
