MANCHESTER UNITED have asked Uefa to consider whether the Italian referee Roberto Rosetti erred with the red card that will suspend Darren Fletcher from their Champions League final against Barcelona on May 27th.

United submitted a report to European football’s governing body yesterday in a final attempt to overturn the midfielder’s controversial dismissal against Arsenal in the semi-final second leg. The move follows advice given to Alex Ferguson by the Uefa general secretary, David Taylor, as they left the Emirates Stadium together on Tuesday night – they shared a car – and represents their only chance of freeing Fletcher to play in Rome. The report does not urge the organisation to consider Fletcher’s case on compassionate grounds, contrary to reports.

The Old Trafford club accept there are no formal grounds to appeal the 25-year-old’s dismissal, given for a professional foul on Cesc Fabregas when replays showed the Scotland international had played the ball first.

Guardian Service