Luka Modric has accused Lee Cattermole of putting his career in jeopardy following the Sunderland captain's latest controversial challenge. The Tottenham playmaker claims Cattermole's studs-first tackle in Tuesday night's 1-1 Barclays Premier League draw at White Hart Lane could easily have broken his leg.
Midfielder Cattermole was shown a yellow card for the 69th-minute incident, and Modric, who stayed down for some time following the tackle, left no doubt where he stood, saying: "Players who tackle like that need to think before making a tackle because they can ruin careers of friends and professionals. They just need to think about it.
"He should have been sent off. I can't show you now but there is a big swelling on my knee and he should have got a red card but the referee decided differently.
"When you see tackles like that, it is a little upsetting, and if they are not punished properly then even more so.
"For now, it is a little bit sore but I hope it will settle down.
"I jumped and if I stayed with my legs on the floor it would have been even worse, but I got out of the way at the last second.
"Maybe if I stayed on the floor I would have broken my leg but I jumped and that has probably saved me.
"Thank God everything finished well."
A fourth league game without a win means Tottenham face a real battle to qualify for the Champions League for a second successive season, leaving them four points behind the top four having played a game more.
Modric said: "If you look at the result, it is not good for us.
"We deserved to win. We should have had a penalty and maybe a red card (for them) and then it would have been a different game. "But we need to focus on the next game and try to win."
