Michael Beale has jumped to the defence of Todd Cantwell and hit out at what he believes is a witch-hunt against the Rangers new boy.
Record Sport columnist and former Celtic striker Chris Sutton called out the former Norwich City midfielder for "going down too easy" during matches, insisting that referees will soon "cotton on” following the weekend win over Hibs, during which he won a free kick converted by James Tavernier.
Cantwell again found the net again in the 2-2 draw with Hearts at Ibrox and Beale was upset with some of the commentary that has surrounded the 25-year-old. The Ibrox boss said: “We all know where it’s coming from. That was a blatant foul at the weekend, two hands in the chest. Anywhere else on the pitch it’s a foul. What’s Todd going to fall over there for? It becomes a narrative around it. He’s doing really well. I think people should just enjoy him while he’s in our league. He’s been in our league a few months and shown lots of bright things. Again tonight a fantastic goal. He’s feisty, he wants to play the game with passion. He’s everything fans want. We’ve just got to be careful. We’ve been down that road before with Alfredo, haven’t we?”
Former Rangers striker and Sutton’s BT Sport sparring partner Ally McCoist also rejected claims from the ex-Hoops hitman that Cantwell went down too easily. He said: "Listen to me, that is a stonewall free-kick, end of story, defender puts two hands across his chest and pulls him back."
On the game itself, Beale - who saw his side conceded in the first and last minute - added: "It's a crazy first minute and a crazy last minute. In between that we played some good football. It's a feisty game and you could see what it mean to them. I thought second half we dominated the game and missed numerous opportunities with our last pass or shot letting us down. It's been a strange evening and quite an emotional evening with the fans and one or two players. We have had an unbeaten home league campaign which is a good sign and we're going to need one next year and pick up a few more points away from home if we want to get where we want to be."
