‘The ball didn’t hit my hand’ – Iheanacho reacts to disallowed Celtic goal

Nigeria forward Kelechi Iheanacho has come out to discuss his disallowed goal for Celtic in their 2-0 Europa League defeat against Portuguese side SC Braga at Celtic Park on Thursday.

With the Hoops trailing 2-0, the former Manchester City forward thought he had grabbed an equaliser after latching on to a defensive mistake and finishing superbly. However, he was denied his second consecutive Europa League goal after his effort was ruled out for handball.

“The ball didn’t hit my hand, it hit my face. It was an awful decision and it changed the game because we could have been back in the game,” Iheanacho told Celtic TV after the game.

“It was a disappointing result and we’re gutted we lost. But we don’t need to put our heads down, we just need to focus now on Sunday’s game.”

Iheanacho will hope to score for Celtic against Motherwell

After the game, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers voiced his frustration after the goal was disallowed. He said: “We’re still waiting to hear what the reason was. It was a pivotal moment in the game.

“We started the game well, and after 20 minutes, when they get the goal, I thought they then controlled the rest of the first half. We changed the structure of the team at half time, we were more aggressive and then we get the goal.”

He added: “For the life of me, I don’t understand why it wasn’t given because it’s not even close to being a handball. We’re still waiting on an explanation for that decision.”

Celtic have now picked one point from two Europa League matches, having drawn 1-1 draw against Belgrade in the opener.

Iheanacho will hope to find the back of the net when Celtic return to action to face Motherwell in a Scottish Premiership fixture at Celtic Park on Sunday.