Rafael van der Vaart: 'I exaggerated Robert Lewandowski clash'

Hamburg midfielder Rafael van der Vaart has admitted that he made the most of an incident involving Robert Lewandowski to ensure that the Borussia Dortmund forward was sent off in their Bundesliga clash on Saturday.

The Dutch playmaker went down after a confrontation with the Poland striker and Van der Vaart says that he deliberately exaggerated his injuries to the referee.

"In the scene with Lewandowski I had to do a bit of theatre. I had the feeling that he would not otherwise have been sent off," Van der Vaart told reporters.

"It was a clear red and it was a fiery match."

Hamburg were already 2-1 up when the incident occurred and went on to record a 4-1 win over the German champions.