• Premier League

Poyet demands apology for Brown dismissal

Wes Brown was red carded for a challenge on Charlie Adam © Getty Images

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Sunderland boss Gus Poyet is demanding an apology from referees' chief Mike Riley after Wes Brown was controversially sent off against Stoke.

Poyet also accused Riley of favouring British managers, after his apology to West Brom boss Steve Clarke over a dubious penalty awarded by Andre Marriner which gave Chelsea a last-gasp draw against the Baggies at Stamford Bridge on November 9.

Brown was red carded for a strong challenge on Charlie Adam in the 36th minute of Sunderland's 2-0 defeat at the Britannia.

Following the match, Poyet took a laptop into his press conference and urged reporters to watch replays of Brown's tackle. But the Uruguayan insists it is unlikely Riley will say sorry to him because he is not British.

"I'd like the referee's association to apologise to me after this, like they did last week. They did it with a British manager. They need to do it with a foreign manager and make it 1-1," said Poyet.

"Then, the referee will have said it was not a red card and I don't need to appeal.

"There is no doubt. If anyone wants to see it [the tackle] again you are very welcome to look on my laptop. The linesman didn't even put his flag up. The fourth official told me he didn't say a word. And yet it took the referee three seconds to make the decision. I spoke to Charlie Adam and he told me the tackle caught his shinpad a little.

"I can't say we lost the game because of it but, of course, it made a massive difference. Do we have a reputation with referees for being dirty? It's a good question. You'll have to ask Mike Riley. Are we dirty? No. Tell me one player who's dirty? Are we aggressive? Yes."

Stoke manager Mark Hughes, Poyet's former teammate at Chelsea, defended the decision.

"I'm sure Gus is aggrieved, but my interpretation was that the tackle was a bit reckless," he said. "It was a poor challenge. Whether it was a red card or not is something to debate after the game but I've also looked at it on the laptop and it looks worse from some angles than others. Charlie told me he was caught high on the shinpad and the referee felt that it was a sending off."

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