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Bungling Mike Dean added a new chapter to the VAR farce... it was screamingly obvious from Tomas Soucek’s body movement that an attack was not his intent

An appeal against the nonsense of Tomas Soucek’s red card has been lodged, so the goalless draw between Fulham and West Ham cannot be fully banished from memory just yet.

It wasn’t an abysmal game, but it is telling that its one distinguishing feature came in stoppage time with another ludicrous VAR decision.

It was a freeze-frame that would have you believe a violent man was lurking inside one of football’s gentler souls, and that Soucek had intentionally elbowed Aleksandar Mitrovic’s forehead.

West Ham's Tomas Soucek (centre) was shown a red card in Saturday's 0-0 draw with Fulham for appearing to raise his elbow into the face of striker Aleksandar Mitrovic
The Czech midfielder's elbow made contact with Fulham striker Mitrovic's face on Saturday

While contact was clear, it was also screamingly obvious from Soucek’s body movement that an attack was not his intent.