Stuart Dougal in Willie Collum nod as Hearts red card dissenters told VAR was bang on the money

Nick Walsh had no choice but to send off Alex Cochrane after he'd seen his foul on Daizen Maeda from every angle, according to former whistler Stuart Dougal.

Cochrane saw red late in the first half for a last-man foul on Maeda as Celtic went on to win 2-0 and clinch the title at Tynecastle. It was the pivotal turning point in the game as Hearts gave good account of themselves in the first half but were unable to match Ange Postecoglou's team when reduced to ten, as the champions won it through strikes from Kyogo and Hyeongyu Oh.

Whistler Walsh initially booked left-back Cochrane but after a VAR review was recommended by Willie Collum behind the screens, Maeda was deemed to have been the last man. That sparked widespread controversy over whether it was an obvious goalscoring opportunity, given the relatively unfavourable angle with the challenge taking place on the right flank outside the box.

But Dougal, speaking on the BBC's VARdict, reckons it was an example of VAR doing it's job - claiming Walsh had no other choice after viewing it from a wide angle. He said "First and foremost, VAR thinks that there is a clear and obvious error. The match referee has got a certain angle, he doesn't have a particularly wide angle so I can understand why he may have thought it was a yellow.

"But when (the clip) is stopped there, for me there's no doubt that he is denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity. And therefore, it is a red card.

"I fully understand that some people think it's harsh but VAR can't be criticised there for getting the referee across. And if we bear in mind that Nick Walsh is one of our more experienced referees now, with the naked eye he thinks it's a yellow, but Willie Collum on VAR thinks it's more than that