Police reach verdict on Vaclav Cerny water bottle incident in Celtic v Rangers clash

Police Scotland has confirmed that no action will be taken against the Czechia international after he was spotted spraying Celtic fans with a water bottle as he raced down the touchline while celebrating his team's late winner.

Cerny was on the Rangers bench having been substituted minutes earlier when Hamza Igamane struck in the 88th minute to seal a 3-2 victory for the away side.

The incident, which was captured by Sky Sports cameras, sparked a furious reaction from the home supporters behind the away dugout, with police and stewards stepping in to calm the situation.

A police probe was launched and while Cerny has been cleared of any criminal conduct he could yet face retrospective punishment from the Scottish FA.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "We received information, enquiries were carried out and no criminality has been established. Officers have engaged with the club and advice was given."

The actions of Cerny - who is on loan from German side Wolfsburg - were criticised by Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers who accused the Rangers player of showing a "lack of respect".

He added: "I certainly wouldn't want my players to do it."

Cerny was backed, however, by Rangers interim manager Barry Ferguson who said he had "no issue" with his player’s celebration.

"He's excited because his team-mate has just scored what was to be the winning goal," Ferguson stated. "I would have a problem if my players and staff sat in their seat and never said a word or done anything.

"I want to see players and staff celebrate. We play football to win games, and when we win games I want to see my players and staff celebrate alongside our supporters.

"Sometimes you get a wee bit over-excited. I've no issues with that. Vaclav was just over excited with his team-mate scoring a goal to get us three points where we've not been able to do that for five years, which is a long, long time."