SCOTT BROWN will fly to Uefa's headquarters in Switzerland next week to appeal in person against his three-match Champions League suspension.
The Celtic captain will miss the Ajax match in Amsterdam on November 6 and AC Milan at Parkhead on November 26 unless he can successfully reduce the punishment which followed his red card for a fly kick at Neymar.
A one-game ban was mandatory but Celtic were deeply unhappy when Uefa announced Brown would miss more than half of the campaign - the remaining 31 minutes of the Barcelona game after he was dismissed, and then the three-game suspension - because of a single incident.
Manager Neil Lennon believes Brown has strong grounds to appeal the additional punishment and he revealed yesterday that the captain will speak to Uefa himself when his hearing is called at their headquarters in Nyon, near Geneva. "Scott won't be going unaccompanied next week. We'll have legal representation with him in the shape of the club lawyer and our secretary.
"We think it's important that Scott goes in person, we believe it'll be better if he goes and puts his case across. It has made a difference in the past. I think Wayne Rooney did it and so did John Terry, who had his ban reduced. So we're hopeful there will be a semblance of fairness going into it and I'm sure there will be.
"If it gets reduced to two games, great, it's worthwhile doing. Personally, I still maintain that the ban is excessive. The half-hour he missed against Barcelona and 90 minutes against Ajax is enough."
Uefa have still to confirm a date for Brown's hearing next week.
His absence has left Celtic short of midfield options in the Champions League, especially since Nir Biton will now be suspended for also receiving a late red card against Ajax on Tuesday. Lennon was unimpressed by the Israeli: "He mistimed the tackle and I had no complaints with the red card. The annoying thing is, with Brown out, is that he'll now be missing as well."
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