Queen's Park Rangers midfielder Shaun Derry blasted the Football Association as "ridiculous" on Thursday after his red card against Manchester United was upheld.
Derry was sent-off for tripping Ashley Young in the penalty area, but he hoped his suspension would be over-turned as the United player had been offside.
"I thought it was a foregone conclusion that it would be overturned and I would be available for last night (Wednesday's win over Swansea). Everyone thought the FA would put it to bed that way," Derry told a QPR phone-in.
"I lined up in the training session to play, then I got a call from our assistant manager Mark Bowen who said it had been turned down and I was absolutely gobsmacked. To miss out on the next game is ridiculous really."
He added: "The e-mail we got back from the FA was one line telling me my appeal had not been successful.
"That's as far as the e-mail went - there was no explanation as to why it was not overturned, or even any indication of why I got sent off in the first place. The whole scenario is quite bizarre really.
"It was the single highlight of my career to lead a Premier League side out at Old Trafford - perhaps the pinnacle of my career. So I was bitterly disappointed to say the least. It is a tough pill to swallow."
Source: AFP
