Wolves to appeal Christophe Berra's red card against Watford
Wolves have announced they are appealing Christophe Berra's sending off at Watford on Saturday.
The Scotland international suffered his first straight red in 139 games for Wolves after tussling with Troy Deeney 25 minutes into the game, which they lost 2-1.
Referee Graham Scott's decision appeared extremely harsh, especially as former Walsall striker Deeney managed to outmuscle Berra and get his shot away, which was saved by Carl Ikeme. Clubs are only allowed to appeal straight red cards and Wolves lost their previous one when Nenad Milijas was sent off at Arsenal last December but they think they have a strong case.
Manager Stale Solbakken told the Express & Star today: "We have to do it because it's a very wrong decision and we have to make sure we underline it.
"If Berra did anything, then it was only to react to an elbow in the throat or to something that was putting him in an unnatural position. They were running towards the goal and their guy was holding him back a little bit.
"I'm not saying Deeney did anything wrong, but certainly Berra didn't do anything wrong."
Asked if he had spoken to the referee, Solbakken said: "I spoke to him after the game and he described it as taking away a goalscoring opportunity."
Berra welcomed the decision to appeal the decision, saying: "I didn't think it was a sending off.
"I thought it was a poor one and everyone in the stadium would probably agree. He (Deeney) said to me at half-time 'it was never a sending off'."
Solbakken, however, realises it's time for Wolves to get some points on the board.
Saturday's 2-1 defeat was Wolves' fourth straight loss on the road and puts them 16th in the Championship.
"I'm pleased with how we're fighting and it's credit to the players, but we're also in a situation where we need points quickly," said the boss.
"We ended up with zero points on Saturday and we're in a situation where we badly need points at the moment.
"We were talking about fighting spirit last week and now we have two home games where it's very crucial for us to get on track again.
"You lose your rhythm a little when you play with 10 men for 65 minutes on Saturday and over a half the previous game."
