Former Premier League referee Graham Poll has expressed his belief that Martin Atkinson had no choice but to send off Steven Gerrard for his stamp on Manchester United's Ander Herrera.

The Reds captain was dismissed 48 seconds after coming on as a half-time substitute in the 2-1 defeat at Anfield and Poll has claimed that Atkinson handled the situation correctly.

He told the Daily Mail: "The biggest call of the game was the clearest – once it became clear that both Atkinson and his assistant had seen Steven Gerrard's stamp on Ander Herrera there could only be one outcome.

"Gerrard accepted the decision to send him off after he had only been on the field for just over 30 seconds in a post-match interview. Atkinson did not let Herrera escape as he cautioned him for the late challenge which provoked Gerrard's retaliation.

"Atkinson was always going to come under pressure from Liverpool players and fans to 'level things up' and there were opportunities to do that the most notable 10 minutes later when Phil Jones mistimed a strong challenge on Jordan Henderson."

Gerrard has apologised for his challenge on Herrera, adding that he let down his teammates and Liverpool supporters with his actions.