“We won the trophy,” Paulo Bernardo shrugs off penalty meltdown

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The Celtic Star

·18 December 2024

“We won the trophy,” Paulo Bernardo shrugs off penalty meltdown

Celtic star Paulo Bernardo has shrugged off the ongoing non-penalty award meltdown by rightfully reminding everyone, ‘we won the trophy’…Honest mistakes can happen in football, VAR or no VAR…

Paulo Bernardo and Brendan Rodgers during the Premier Sports Cup Final between Celtic and theRangers at Hampden on Sunday 15 December 2024. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

The Portuguese u-21 skipper started and played 71 minutes at Hampden Park on Sunday before being substituted for Celtic’s record-breaking signing Arne Engels late in the second-half.

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Bernardo merited a Cup Final start

Bernardo merited a start due to his eye-catching displays in recent domestic matches which caught the attention of Brendan Rodgers to reward him with a place in the starting XI for crucial back-to-back games against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League and then theRangers.in the Premier Sports League Cup final.

Battling hard in the middle of the pitch, Celtic’s midfield playmaker played a significant role in the Hoops’ second-half turnaround. Indeed, it was Bernardo’s inviting corner for Greg Taylor’s equaliser that proved pivotal in Celtic fighting back from 1-0 down.

Paulo Bernardo in action during the Premier Sports Cup Final victory over theRangers at Hampden on 15 December 2024. Photo AJ for The Celtic Star

A lot has been made in the media around Philippe Clement’s side not being awarded a penalty after Vaclav Cerny was pulled down by Celtic’s half-time substitute Liam Scales in the first-half of extra-time.

An Honest Mistake

Now, theRangers new incoming CEO Patrick Stewart, who conveniently decided he wanted to start officially in the role on Monday, stated he had written to the SFA demanding an explanation to why a penalty was not given. And Willie Collum is set to admit officially that it was AN HONEST MISTAKE but probably would admit that he thought that they were only supposed to happen FOR an Ibrox outfit and not AGAINST them. Maybe referees need EYES IN THE BACK OF THEIR HEADS after all Willie?

Paulo Bernardo in action during the Premier Sports Cup Final victory over theRangers at Hampden on 15 December 2024. Photo AJ for The Celtic Star

VAR has already denied Celtic two penalties that Collum said should have been given, now we apparently have had a rub of the green with one not being given that should have, so we’re still down 2-1 are we not?

“We don’t focus on that decision”

However, Bernardo explained he and his teammates securing the club’s 119th honour was completely justified: “We don’t focus on that decision. We just move forward now,” he said.

“We won the trophy after a very good game and that’s all we think about. It was a difficult game on Sunday. Both teams played well, and it was a good game for supporters to watch. But we had almost 70 per cent of the ball and I think we deserved to win the cup.”

Paul Bernardo with the Premier Sports Cup after Celtic’s victory over theRangers on 15 December 2024 at Hampden Park. Photo Kenny Ramsay

“In the final moments, we had the quality to win the game, and the players did so well in the shootout. When it came to the big pressure moments, we delivered. Our objective was to win the trophy, and we managed to do that.”

Celtic FC Foundation’s Christmas Party

Speaking at the Celtic FC Foundation’s Christmas Party, Bernardo reiterated the Hoops’ mindset is the key factor behind yearly dominance.

“All we wanted was to lift that trophy and it felt so good for us as a team and a club. The mentality is so strong within the squad. No matter what, we know that we have to find a way to win. We won the League Cup and now we move on to the next one.”

“It was important to win on Sunday and we celebrated – but now we move on. We want to win all the trophies, of course, but we need to take it step by step and not look too far ahead.”

Up next for Paulo Bernardo and Celtic is a trip to Tannadice on Sunday in the Scottish Premiership. Remarkably, it will be the first time Brendan Rodgers will have faced Dundee United over his two spells as Celtic manager.

Conor Spence

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