Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren has called out Everton midfielder Ross Barkley over his reckless tackle in the Merseyside Derby at the weekend, and has criticised the England international over his lack of an apology.
The Reds ran out 3-1 victors over their local rivals at Anfield on Saturday afternoon and as usual there were plenty of talking points after the final whistle.
One of which was whether or not Barkley should have been shown a red card for his studs-up challenge on Lovren, who was subsequently sent sprawling to the floor, writhing in agony.
Speaking via the Mirror, the Croatian centre-back insisted his leg isn’t in great shape following the incident, saying:
“If I show you my leg, you will be ‘Eeeewww!’ (pulls a face).
“I won’t, because it will be the headlines tomorrow if I show you my leg.
“It was a tough challenge, but we have seen it many times before and if I talk it will be all over the newspapers.
“That is the only thing I do not like. If you make a hard challenge then be open about it and say sorry, or something like that.
“Don’t talk to the referee and say it was not a foul. I think everyone saw it, especially me, but now it is over.”
Barkley is no stranger to a tough challenge in these matches and was guilty of a similar tackle on Jordan Henderson in the teams’ first meeting earlier this season.
But should he have apologised to Lovren afterwards? And should he have been shown a red card in the first place?
What do you think?
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