Liverpool's James Milner slams 'disgraceful' tackle on Yasser Larouci by Sevilla defender Gnagnon

James Milner has branded Joris Gnagnon’s tackle a ‘disgrace’ after the Sevilla defender was sent off in a friendly in America.

Gnagnon, 22, received his marching orders 14 minutes from time for lashing out at youngster Yasser Larouci as he ran across the Frenchman.

Liverpool were left furious with the tackle - as the 18-year-old left the pitch in Boston on a stretcher.

And the former Manchester City man was understandably livid as the Reds fell to a 2-1 defeat.

Milner told LFCTV after the match: "Was it too much? I thought so yes, it was a disgraceful tackle.

"We know it's only a friendly, but I mean, you don't see many red cards in friendlies, do you?

"Their guy said it is down to the referee and it's a tackle and a foul, but it's very disappointing. We [responded] in the right way.

"It is a tough one for the referee because you don't want to use red cards in friendlies and it is a rare thing to see.

"It's not easy to get hold of the game, you don't normally see too many tackles [like Gnagnon's] but it is a disgrace really."

The Frenchman apologised after the match, confessing on Twitter that the tackle was ‘odious’.

He tweeted: “I would like to publicly apologise towards Liverpool, the family of the player and its supporters.

“It was an odious act on my part. Whatever the reason, it’s not what should be seen on a football pitch.

“All my prayers are with the player and his family.”

Manager Jurgen Klopp, though, refused to ‘create headlines’ with his post-match comments in the defeat.

"It is much too early in the season to create headlines by saying the things I think about the situation,” he added.

"It looks like Larouci was lucky but we have to wait. He hit him full throttle. Harry got a knock on his cheekbone and his eye so that was not too cool.

"In general, I don't like overly hard games. The challenge is there to win the ball, that's the only reason. There are rules. I don't want to say anything specific about this game because there will be headlines. I want to have a holiday in Spain again."

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