Avram Grant launched a scathing attack on Phil Dowd yesterday after the FA rejected Chelsea’s appeal against Ashley Cole’s sending-off in the Barclays Premier League match at home to Aston Villa on Boxing Day. The Chelsea manager accused the referee of being dishonest and demanded an apology after the official stood by his contention that Cole deliberately handled the ball on the line during the 4-4 draw. Cole has been given a three-match suspension starting against Newcastle United today.

“I would say that the referee and the assistant should be honest,” Grant said. “They thought he’d saved it with his hand, but it was his head. I expected him, at the appeal, to be honest. He said that Ashley saved it with his hand, but the television shows he saved it with his head. Now they’re saying head to chest and maybe touching his hand. I expected them to say they are sorry, they were wrong - like [Ricardo] Carvalho did [after he was sent off for a two-footed challenge in the same match]. They have to be honest about it. If it [the appeal] is for nothing I’ll think about not bothering again in the future.”

Cole’s suspension leaves Grant without eight players for the visit of Newcastle and his problems are likely to get worse. In addition to six long-term injuries, Chelsea will also lose John Obi Mikel, Michael Essien and Salo-mon Kalou to the African Cup of Nations that starts next month, forcing Grant to go on a spending spree.

“In every position, even if we have good players, if there is someone who will be good for us we will take him,” the first-team coach said. “Especially with the injured players and the African Cup of Nations. If the injuries continue like this, we’ll need more than we said before. Not only players who can play in Europe, though that would be an advantage. In February the injured players and the African players will be back.”

Aston Villa’s appeal to the FA against the red card shown to Zat Knight in the 4-4 draw away to Chelsea on Boxing Day was rejected yesterday. Knight was sent off when he was adjudged to have denied an obvious goalscoring opportunity by fouling Michael Ballack in first-half stoppage time. Knight is now suspended for today’s match away to Wigan Athletic. Martin O’Neill, the manager, said: “We are obviously disappointed because we felt we had a case. But we abide by the decision and prepare for tomorrow’s important game at Wigan without him."