Hull City's Ahmed Elmohamady has insisted that his teammate Maynor Figueroa did not intend to cause harm when he tackled Stoke City's Stephen Ireland during last weekend's clash at the Britannia.
Ireland was left needing 15 stitches in his calf following Figueroa's challenge, which Stoke manager Mark Hughes believes warranted a red card.
While Elmohamady has admitted that he didn't see the tackle at the time, he has described the incident as something that is "normal" in football.
"Maynor had some stitches as well," the Hull Daily Mail quotes Elmohamady as saying. "That was a different challenge but no-one saw that. What I saw was a challenge that he just continued. He went for the ball and won the ball first.
"It is not nice but it's normal in football. No one goes out meaning to hurt anyone. The Premier League is a strong and physical league and sometimes these things happen. I have known Maynor for a long time and he is a great lad."
Stoke went on to win 1-0 at the Britannia.
Danielle Joynson
