Manchester United are set to appeal against Lisandro Martinez’s red card in the 2-1 defeat against Leeds United at the behest of Michael Carrick.
However, former Premier League referee Peter Watson has told the interim manager that he’s “wasting his time” and has “no chance of success”.
Martinez was handed his marching orders just 11 minutes into the second half for pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s ponytail during an aerial duel.
At the time, United were chasing the game after going into the half time interval with a two-goal deficit.
Noah Okafor netted a brace before the half hour mark as relegation-battling Leeds stunned the Red Devils supporters into silence at the Theatre of Dreams.
Martinez’s sending off made United’s comeback efforts even more difficult.
While Casemiro’s 69th-minute header sparked hopes of defying the odds, United ultimately succumbed to their first home defeat against their bitter rivals in 45 years.
After the game, Carrick slammed referee Paul Tierney’s decision to send off Martinez after a VAR review.
“That decision was one of the worst I’ve ever seen,” Carrick said. “He [Calvert-Lewin] can throw his arms in Licha’s [Martínez’s] face and then he’s sent off.
“It’s not a pull, it’s not a tug, it’s not aggressive. He touches it and he gets sent off.
“He is off balance and grappling. We have got to be careful where the game is going. It is a shocking decision, absolutely shocking.”
United have now decided to appeal the decision, with Martinez set to miss crucial Premier League games against Chelsea, Brentford and Liverpool if the dismissal is upheld.
However, Watson has urged the Englishman to focus on other matters, dismissing his chances of convincing the Football Association (FA) to overturn the red card.
“During my career as a Premier League referee, there was no agreed position on hair-pulling, so the punishment for it was at the official’s discretion,” Walton wrote in The Times.
“Why have things significantly changed, so that when Manchester United’s Lisandro Martínez tugged on Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s bun on Monday night, the VAR John Brooks knew he was obliged to advise Paul Tierney, the referee, that it was a red-card offence?
“Well, partly it’s because it has become a more common offence in the men’s game. When a player pulls an opponent’s hair they are doing it only to hurt or antagonise them.
“I can tell Michael Carrick now he is wasting his time appealing against Martínez’s red card. The United head coach has no chance of success.”
Despite the defeat, United are still on course to qualify for the Champions League as they sit third in the Premier League table with six games left.
