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LOS ANGELES. — Cesc Fabregas apologised yesterday to Liverpool new-boy Ragnar Klavan for his late tackle that landed him a red card here.

Fabregas was sent off for a reckless lunge at Liverpool new boy Klavan, overshadowing a 1-0 friendly win at the Pasadena Rose Bowl on Wednesday.

Chelsea midfielder Fabregas clattered into the Estonian defender with 20 minutes left.

But he blamed ref Baldomero Toledo for losing control of the game after booking six players – five from Liverpool.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said: “He came in the dressing room and said sorry, he came too late in the challenge.

“Sometimes in life if you are too late then you get a red card.”

And Fabregas said: “The way the ref was giving yellow cards, it probably deserved a red card.

“In the Premier League, probably you could get away with it.

“I got there late, he got a toe to the ball and then I was anxious to win the ball. It was a hard tackle, so I accept it and move on.” It was Fabregas’ first game since returning back from his holidays — and he had been impressive as Chelsea won 1-0 courtesy of a first-half Gary Cahill header. — The Sun.