Celtic submit appeal to SFA over Auston Trusty red card against Hearts

Celtic have confirmed that they are to submit an appeal to the Scottish FA over the red card shown to Auston Trusty in the 2-2 draw with Hearts.

Trusty was sent off in the top-of-the-table clash at Tynecastle for a challenge on Landry Kabore as the Hearts forward chased a ball in behind the Celtic back line.

Match referee Steven McLean initially showed Trusty a yellow card for the foul but VAR intervened to send McLean to the monitor, where he decided that the defender had prevented a goalscoring opportunity and changed the yellow card for red.

Celtic believe he reached the wrong decision and the incident will now be reviewed by an independent panel at a fast-track tribunal this week.

Following the final whistle on Sunday, Celtic boss Martin O’Neill had made it clear he thought the officials had blundered in a high-stakes game, with the result leaving Hearts at the top of the table and Celtic six points behind in third place.

“I did have an argument with the red card,” O’Neill said. “The referee has given a yellow card. Obviously, VAR’s re-refereeing the game.

“First of all, the ball is going away from goal, so the player has to get a hold of that and control it. And secondly, and more importantly, is that we’ve got someone covering.

“That’s what the referee saw in the first place, and he was pretty close to it. It puts you under severe pressure in the last 20-odd minutes.”