Aston Villa's Brad Friedel has insisted he should not have been sent off for bringing down Fernando Torres .

The American shot-stopper was dismissed in the second half and Steven Gerrard converted the resulting penalty to make it 5-0 to the Reds.

But Friedel was far from happy with referee Martin Atkinson, who he insisted got it wrong as he feels Nigel Reo-Coker was level with Torres - thus not making him the last man.

"I just stood my ground, and as the cameras show I turned my shoulders to show that I didn't try to make contact - he (Torres) is the one who ran in and made contact with me," Friedel told Sky Sports.

"Does he have an argument for a penalty sure, does he have an argument for a booking sure, but a sending off is very harsh considering he had a defender alongside him."

Friedel is now set to miss Villa's next match at Manchester United.