UEFA to hear Legia appeal after Celtic decision

Legia Warsaw have called on UEFA to follow its own ”football first” principle when their appeal against their effective Champions League expulsion is heard.

UEFA’s control and disciplinary body will on Wednesday morning hear Legia’s appeal against the governing body’s decision to award Celtic a 3-0 second-leg victory following the Polish champions’ registration error.

Legia saw a 6-1 aggregate victory turned into an away-goals defeat after bringing on Bartosz Bereszynski in the belief that he had served a three-match ban – only to discover they had not registered him in their squad for the previous round.

A statement from Legia read: ”Football is our common passion. We are deeply convinced this beautiful game should be based on universal values – shared by everyone who enters the pitch to compete for victory. Those values, widely accepted by the entire European football family, are: football first, fair play and respect.

”Over previous days we have been closely following the decisions of European football authorities. We believe the most crucial element of the game is the result settled in honest and fair competition on the pitch, as highlighted in the UEFA values: ’Football First’!

”We are responsible for the fate of the game and we should all feel obliged to protect the beautiful football heritage based on these superior values for the generations to come.“

On the pitch, new signing Jason Denayer has vowed to grab his chance under manager Ronny Deila.

The 19-year-old Belgian defender arrived on a season-long loan from Manchester City on Monday, as did Aston Villa’s Bulgaria winger Aleksandar Tonev.

Denayer was with the City first-team squad on their tours of Scotland and the United States.

But his path from the club’s elite development squad was further blocked this week when the English champions signed France central defender Eliaquim Mangala in a £32m transfer from Porto.

While Tonev misses the trip to St Johnstone for Celtic’s first Scottish Premiership game of the season tonight with a knock, Denayer is looking for an opportunity to shine.

He said: “I asked to go on loan and Celtic were the club who gave me the most assurances to play. When I spoke with the manager he told me he was going to give me my chance, so when I get my chance it is up to me.

“I need to play well and show him I can play.”

Denayer claimed he would be ready, if required, for the Champions League play-off first-leg match against Maribor next week.

“I am sure I can play,” he said. ”I thought about it before I came and if I wasn’t ready to come to play then I wouldn’t have come.”