What football lawmakers say about Hearts offside goal against Celtic as Lawrence Shankland chop explained

The Hearts striker was denied a goal by offside in the first half.

Lawrence Shankland was deemed offside against Celtic.

IFAB rules give some guidance on why Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland's goal against Celtic was cut off.

In a first half marred by VAR decisions in the key Premiership clash, the Scotland international buried past Hoops goalkeeper Joe Hart minutes before the interval. A lengthy check ensued as lines were drawn, eventually ruling it offside, but debate has emerged over whether this should have stood or not.

He eventually got his goal in the second half with a sweet finish into the bottom corner. Football lawmakers IFAB have clear guidance on what does and doesn't constitute offside in a pointer to why his first shot beyond Hart didn't count.

Law 11 reads: "A player is in an offside position if any part of the head, body or feet is in the opponents’ half (excluding the halfway line) and any part of the head, body or feet is nearer to the opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent.

"The hands and arms of all players, including the goalkeepers, are not considered. For the purposes of determining offside, the upper boundary of the arm is in line with the bottom of the armpit.

"A player is not in an offside position if level with the second-last opponent or last two opponents."

Pundit Kris Boyd gave his opinion on Sky Sports: "Forrest, can you release (the pass) a second earlier? Carter-Vickers does really well. It's a fantastic finish but he is offside and VAR got that one right, there is no doubt about that. It's crystal clear."