Dundee United appeal Vicko Sevelj red card, Dundee challenge Yan Dhanda suspension

Dundee and Dundee United have submitted appeals against red cards shown to their players during the weekend’s Premiership action.

Both of the city’s sides were reduced to ten men during their league matches on Saturday and both think match officials made the wrong call, prompting them to call for independent tribunals to review the decisions.

Dundee’s Yan Dhanda was sent off during his side’s draw with Motherwell after a challenge on Motherwell’s Lukas Fadinger. Manager Steven Pressley said after the final whistle he hadn’t seen the incident in detail but after reviewing the tackle, the Dens Park club believe they have a case to see the decision overturned.

United’s Vicko Sevelj was dismissed in the final minutes of their 3-3 draw with Hibernian at Easter Road. The Croatian was sent off following a VAR review that ruled he had stopped a goalscoring opportunity by handling the ball.

United boss Jim Goodwin was in disbelief at the decision, which handed Hibs the opportunity to equalise from the penalty.

“I would hate to be a defender in the modern day game and I certainly wouldn’t enjoy being a referee either, having to come to decisions on things that are so subjective.

“Vicko has tried to hold off the Hibs player to his left.

“He puts his arm out to block the Hibs player. Yes, the ball hit him on the upper arm, the sleeve line, possibly, but there was absolutely no intent.

“Then to get the red card after that was just quite incredible really.

“The referee spoke about it being a clear and obvious goalscoring opportunity that Vicko has denied.

“By the letter of the law, then he needs to come to that outcome.”

The Laws of the Game state that it is a handball offence if a player:

touches the ball with their hand/arm when it has made their body unnaturally bigger. A player is considered to have made their body unnaturally bigger when the position of their hand/arm is not a consequence of, or justifiable by, the player’s body movement for that specific situation. By having their hand/arm in such a position, the player takes a risk of their hand/arm being hit by the ball and being penalised

deliberately touches the ball with their hand/arm, for example moving the hand/arm towards the ball

A red card is only shown if “a player denies the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal-scoring opportunity by committing a deliberate handball offence”.

Both clubs will have their cases heard when the Scottish FA convenes an independent panel later this week.