Depending on what team you support, Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos either now owns Scottish football after last night’s performance or he disgraces it.
The Colombian is never far away from the action and once again grabbed the headlines for the right and wrong reasons as a petulant “stamp” and a lovely finish dominated the post-match reaction.
For Jack Ross and the Hibs support Morelos should never have been on the pitch to score the only goal of the game and they’ve probably got the right to be aggrieved.
That said, that only really stands up if you point-out the hammer throwing Porteous challenge in the opening stages of the game which Morelos avoided.
Or the blatant stamp-come-instant-realisation-of-what-he’s-done from a laboured Darren McGregor on Glen Kamara in the second half.
But where this tiresome scrutiny falls down is in the coverage of the incident in the post-match when similar moments – and certainly worse – are skipped over nonchalantly.
I get it – Morelos gives them an excuse and dragging all this up makes for good headlines and good copy. Hell, this very story is an example of that.
But for those tasked with the job of talking up our game to so desperately demand retrospective action and a ban of one of the league’s most marketable talents tastes very much like sour grapes.
In fact, this narrative – driven heavily by the audibly gutted Ian Crocker and Andy Walker who for some reason are given Rangers matches on Sky despite the moonhowling – is just that.
It’s a sour tonic for their grumbling woes in a season where Rangers have inflicted emotionally scarring damage on anyone who might lean more into camp Celtic.
Clinging on and overblowing any incident involving Morelos is one way of soothing the pain of a season which promises to deliver floods of it sooner rather than later. Oh yes, there’s more to come.
It’s transparent and desperate, cringeworthy and ultimately self-defeating.
God forbid any of our dour-faced commentators would like to speak about the football, they’d just have to watch highlight reels of Rangers proverbially slapping about all in their path.
Go on, push for Morelos to get banned, be outraged if he doesn’t – but it’s not going to stop Rangers’ resident firebrand getting his hands on the Scottish Premiership trophy this season.
And when that happens, there will be few tonics – not even feigning outrage over a stamp – which will ease the pain of our rivals.
Rangers fans have slammed commentary duo Ian Crocker and Andy Walker for their coverage of the incident as they continue to demand better value for money from Sky Sports.
