Middlesbrough fail in Aliadiere sending off appeal
Boro to appeal Aliadiere's red card
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Tuesday, 26, Feb 2008 03:25
Middlesbrough have failed in their appeal against the red card picked up by Jeremie Aliadiere in their defeat to Liverpool.
The striker was shown a straight red in the closing minutes of the defeat at Anfield on Saturday after referee Lee Mason adjudged he had slapped Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano.
The sending off effectively ended the visitors' hopes of getting anything from the game, coming just two minutes after Stewart Downing had pulled a goal back to make it 3-2.
Middlesbrough had contested the decision on the grounds that the incident did not constitute violent conduct.
However, a disciplinary commission at Soho Square disagreed and upheld Mason's decision, adding it believed the appeal was "frivolous".
It means Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate will now be forced to do without the 24-year-old for four matches - three games for the offence itself, with an additional game for the substance of the appeal.
Meanwhile, despite his side's victory over Middlesbrough, Rafa Bentitez has stated that he has no plans to end his policy of rotating players ahead of their Champions League clash with Inter Milan.
Liverpool travel to Italy for the second leg as favourites to progress to the quarter-finals after goals from Dirk Kuyt and Steven Gerrard gave them a 2-0 victory at Anfield.