Everton players say Sotirios Kyrgiakos deserved his red card on Saturday.

Liverpool defender Kyrgiakos was dismissed for a two-footed airborne lunge that saw Marouane Fellaini stretchered off.

There were claims from within Anfield that Fellaini himself could have been carded for appearing to stamp into the collision, but the visiting players thought their man was merely defending himself when he saw Kyrgiakos take off.

And Everton skipper Phil Neville insisted the challenge was out of order. "The lads say he went with his studs up, and you don't want to see tackles like that.

"After that I thought the ref maybe trying to even it up, because that always happens in derbies, and he did."