Nasri: Vardy is a cheat

The on-loan Manchester City midfielder was handed a second yellow card after he went head to head with the Leicester striker in the 74th minute.

The Premier League champions managed to hold on to their 2-0 lead against the 10 men to go through 3-2 on aggregate.

Nasri has now accused the England international of faking it after he threw his head back as the duo came together.

"He didn't say anything but he played it well," Nasri said to reporters following the game. "We went face to face and then he fell on the floor. I thought the English player was tougher than that. He was the one who came to my face, and then went on the floor. He played it well.

"For me, he is a cheat. Because if he was a foreign player, you the English press would say he is a cheat. For me, he is a cheat.

"They were winning 2-0, play the game like a man. Win it. You are not better than us but you are winning 2-0, you will qualify, just play the game. You have quality, you are an international player, you don't need to do that."

Nasri admitted that he had reacted badly during the confrontation,  but insisted there has been no contact.

"Yes, I did but I didn't touch him," he added. "I didn't do anything with my head. He went on the floor and then the referee gave us both a yellow card."

The ex France international insisted that Vardy had dived to win Nasri his red card.

"Yes he did it, but he did it well. I should have thought about it before and been smarter. If I tell the truth I think you won't be able to write it,” he said.

"I would love to speak to him but you know too many cameras, too many security, and I have to think about next year and not getting a big suspension.

"I was surprised but like I said I should have thought about it and not reacted. But come on man, I am losing, I see the whole thing, coming out of the Champions League, which is a big blow for us, it was just a reaction."