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United boss Van Gaal accuses Payet of diving in FA Cup tie

Football Soccer - Everton v West Ham United - Barclays Premier League - Goodison Park - 5/3/16 Dimitri Payet celebrates after scoring the third goal for West Ham Reuters / Phil Noble Livepic

(Reuters) - West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic has defended Dimitri Payet after the influential midfielder was accused of diving by Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal during Sunday's 1-1 FA Cup draw.

Referee Martin Atkinson turned down West Ham's penalty claims after Payet went down in the box under a 66th minute challenge from defender Marcos Rojo.

"Payet was, more or less, diving," Van Gaal told reporters after the quarter-final at Old Trafford.

"Of course, he was maybe touched but not to fall like that,"

Bilic said Payet, who later scored with a brilliant free kick, should have been awarded a penalty.

"Come on. If you have a screen, show me.... There is more than a contact. It is definitely not a dive," the Croatian said.

"Nobody in the world can say there wasn't a touch. Then if it was a touch, and it is more than a touch, it is a penalty. When you are sliding in the box from behind, I am not saying it was nasty, but it was mistimed.

"Rojo slides and when you are sliding in the box and the ball is nowhere near you, you are taking a big gamble and a big risk. It is a penalty."

(Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru. Editing by Patrick Johnston)

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