Chris Sutton slams 'leg-breaker' red card challenge on former Man City player in Euro 2024 opener

Former Premier League striker Chris Sutton has slammed Watford and Scotland centre-back Ryan Porteous for his challenge on former Manchester City captain Ilkay Gundogan in the 2024 European Championships opener.

The German international was on the receiving end of a horror challenge that saw Porteous send his studs on both feet up into the right shin of Gundogan in the six-yard box as the pair tried to scramble for a loose ball.

Referee Clement Turpin missed the original challenge which was in the midst of a sea of bodies but was quickly sent to the pitchside monitor by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). The French official didn't need long to see the challenge and make his decision, as he ran back onto the pitch to give Porteous his marching orders just 40 minutes into the tournament.

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"You can’t defend that challenge. It’s disgraceful," Sutton told BBC Sport. "That’s a red-card offence, a leg breaker. A scandalous challenge. You can’t tackle like that in any era of football. He knows what he’s trying to do, he goes so high."

Gundogan, who was thought to be Germany's main penalty taker ahead of the tournament, gave the ball to Arsenal striker Kai Havertz who calmly dispatched the spot-kick to make the score 3-0 following Florian Wirtz's opener just under 10 minutes into the first half and Jamal Musiala's effort which made it 2-0.

It's a shocking start to the competition for Scotland, who were always going to be up against it as they took on the hosts of the tournament on the opening night. However, it now appears as though they'll be without one of their key centre-backs who looked important to Steve Clarke's plans to play a three-at-the-back system.