Eric Dier says he’ll see Ander Herrera ‘soon’ after alleged elbow

Eric Dier departed England's friendly with Spain angrily accusing Ander Herrera of elbowing him in the face and claiming he would "see him soon" after a flashpoint that could linger into next month's meeting between the players in the Premier League.

Herrera made contact with Dier five minutes from time, at which stage Spain were still trailing their hosts 2-0, in an occasionally bad-tempered match during which there were six bookings, with the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder so incensed he pursued the Manchester United player down the pitch to remonstrate. Upon being confronted, Herrera apparently denied any wrongdoing. "I think it's pretty clear what he did and I can feel it on my cheek now," the Spurs midfielder said as he left Wembley.

“I’ve made a pass and it was a long time afterwards [that]he’s elbowed me in the face, and I just can’t see why. For me, it’s just ridiculous. So I know what he did, and I don’t like that kind of stuff. I don’t mind people kicking each other at times and stuff, but that’s just dirty and not needed.”

Asked whether he had sought an apology, Dier said: “I don’t need him to apologise. I’ll see him soon … These things happen. But I don’t know why he did it, to be honest. That’s why I was angry. It was just strange and it’s not nice.” Spurs travel to Old Trafford on December 11th.

The Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana left the stadium with an optimistic thumbs up having been withdrawn from the fray midway through the first half having sustained an ankle injury in a challenge from Thiago Alcãntara. He will be assessed by Liverpool’s medical staff before the weekend Premier League match against his former club, Southampton.

(Guardian service)