MATT O’RILEY’S Brighton’s debut was cut short in the sixth minute after a horrendous challenge from Crawley’s Jay Williams last night.
The stylish midfielder, just signed from Celtic for a near-£30million record fee, was sent crashing to the turf as his opponent threw himself into a wayward tackle in the Carabao Cup-tie at the Amex Stadium.
O’Riley failed to respond the treatment and had to be helped off by medics a couple of minutes later.
Brighton boss Fabian Huerzeler, who saw his side win 4-0 after a physical scrap with the third-tier outfit, fumed: “For me, it’s a clear red card.
DEBUT MISERY…Matt O’Riley grimaces in agony as his first appearance from Brighton is cut short.
“You can’t tackle like this, but you can play hard and you can be ruthless.
“I think after this foul it was like the players could tackle like they want because he didn’t get a yellow card.”
The German gaffer, speaking to The Argus, added: “In the end, I hope Matt is not so badly injured like it looks, but we have to wait for a scan of his ankle.
“He said to me he could not put any weight on his ankle.
“I think he is a player who will help us and that’s why we hope that he is not so badly injured. We will have a look how it goes on.”
Opposition manager Scott Lindsey apologised for some of the physicality from his side in his post-match conference and admitted that Williams’s tackle was likely sanctionable having seen replays of it.
His team did finish with 10 men after Jack Roles was banished after a late tackle on Yasin Ayari.
