Martin O'Neill 'disappointed' that Celtic's Trusty appeal was dismissed

Martin O’Neill admits that he was left disappointed by the news that Celtic’s appeal over Auston Trusty’s red card at Tynecastle was dismissed.

The USA international defender was sent off as the Hoops led 2-1 against league leaders Hearts in a game that would finish 2-2.

Trusty was initially shown a yellow card, but that was upgraded after the referee was called over to the VAR monitor for a review.

O’Neill wasn’t convinced that the right decision was reached at the time, and Celtic lodged an official appeal on Monday.

However, that was dismissed less than 24 hours later, with Trusty judged to have stopped an obvious goal-scoring opportunity.

The Celtic manager said: “Just disappointed really, the referee’s initial decision was a yellow card, and I don’t think that was a clear and obvious error.

“It was nice to have the backing of a lot of referees who have refereed big, big matches, when they were asked about it afterwards. But, anyway, it is what it is.”

Celtic are preparing for their final Europa League, league phase game against Dutch side Utrecht on Thursday night.

A win for the Scottish champions would guarantee a place in the knockout stages of the competition, while a draw might also be enough if a string of other results go their way.

O’Neill, who believes any chance Celtic have of going deep into the tournament, said: “We have got ourselves into this position, knowing we have to win the game and if we win the game we get through.

“It’s not as easy as that, I’ve had a look at them and despite their recent record, these boys can play, they are a very decent side and coming here with nothing to concern themselves with, thinking we’ll just go there and enjoy it, and that is a danger in itself.

“They can play, if we give them an opportunity they will cause us problems.”