Kristoffer Ajer slammed as Celtic star cops Kris Boyd blast for ‘ducking out the road’

If anybody was expecting an end-of-season damp squib they had another thing coming at Ibrox on Sunday.

A Rangers and Celtic clash with very little at stake still produced thrills and spills – and that was just the first half.

Alfredo Morelos broke his derby duck at Celtic Park in March but has bagged another that he’ll savour for some time to come.

The Colombian striker nutmegged Scott Brown before lashing high beyond Scott Bain to restore Rangers’ lead after Odsonne Edouard cancelled out Kemar Roofe’s opener for 10-man Celtic.

It was Brown who was unable to stop Morelos in his tracks but it was Kristoffer Ajer who faced accusations of “ducking out the road” from pundits Kris Boyd and Stiliyan Petrov

Boyd said on Sky Sports: “It’s a fantastic strike. Celtic fail to stop the cross to start with, they then clear it but don’t move.

“Morelos finds himself one on one with Scott Brown, gets the break of the ball but you’ve got to say – what a fantastic strike.

“When you look at it again when he cuts inside – Kristoffer Ajer, why is he ducking out the road?

“People will say ‘Scott Brown’ but why is Kristoffer Ajer ducking out the road?

“Fantastic from Alfredo Morelos. As soon as he cuts in the first thing on his mind is to get a shot away and he’s hit the back of the net.”

Petrov, too, was less than impressed with the defending from his old club.

He reckons Ajer should’ve stood up and taken a sore one for his team.

“It’s back to basics, stop the cross. We haven’t stopped the cross,” he lamented.

“Clear the ball, react off the ball. We haven’t managed to do that.

“Scott Brown, who’s communicating where they want to send the player?

“I know Morelos got very, very lucky but Ajer – stand stall, take the hit in the face, stay strong.

“That’s what the keeper and everybody is expecting. If you go back to basics, it’s a great goal but a lot of errors too.”