Rangers plan to appeal the red card given to Mohamed Diomande against Dundee United but have already been warned they might not like the outcome.
After a man-of-the-match display, the midfielder was dismissed deep into stoppage time of the 3-1 win after an incident with Kevin Holt. After the referee blew for a foul, the defender twice pushed Diomande, whose arms certainly went up but not in a deliberate manner towards the player.
Philippe Clement confirmed after the game that Gers would appeal the decision as his player was the one who was attacked.
But he was warned that the appeal might not bare any fruit.
Two former refs agreed that it wasn’t a red card but that the SFA would back Nick Walsh over his instincts that he had seen an “attempt to strike an opponent.”
That seemed to chime with the governing body’s initial response which was along those lines and explained the official thought it constituted violent conduct.
Kris Boyd hit out at Walsh over his stubbornness in sticking with the decision after being urged to check it again on VAR.
While another Gers hero in Ally McCoist joined in this morning, branding it the “worst decision ever” and “inexcusable.”
- READ MORE: Why Philippe Clement didn’t confront Nick Walsh over Rangers red as boss avoids angry Hibs repeat
Dermot Gallagher ‘surprised’ at Rangers red
Former English top flight referee Dermot Gallagher has now assessed the incident for Sky Sports’ Ref Watch and expressed his “surprise”, strongly suggesting Rangers have a case.
Often one to side with the officials, that was not the case this time as he couldn’t understand how Walsh had reached the same outcome after reviewing it.
Gallagher felt there was no attempt to make contact with Holt and that the action certainly didn’t fall under the ‘brutal’ or ‘malicious’ categories.
He said: “I was surprised the red card came out and even more surprised that when Nick was sent to the screen he stuck with his decision. But it does prove that if you’re sent to the screen all options are available.
“He gets pushed, tries to protect, he gets pushed twice. Raises his arms. Does he connect with his face, does he even mean to connect with his face?
“The other thing to remember in law – is it brutal or malicious? Well, I would say it doesn’t come into either.”
Sue Smith agreed: “It’s a real surprise. It’s never a red card in a million years.
“I’ve watched it from all different angles and I just can’t see how it is a red card.”
Rangers can follow Celtic precedent
Rangers actually have a precedent they can follow in terms of their appeal as a similar incident with a Celtic player went unpunished recently.
When they played Dundee United, Luke McCowan threw an arm up in the direction of Glenn Middleton.
It was looked at by VAR but deemed unpunishable.
Will the SFA double down this time, though?
