Bruno Fernandes vented his frustrations following Lisandro Martinez’s sending off in Manchester United’s shock 2-1 loss at home to Leeds United. The Reds went down to 10 men in the second half when the Argentine was handed his marching orders.
Martinez was adjudged to have pulled Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair and VAR intervened. Paul Tierney went and watched the incident on the pitchside monitor and brandished a red card.
The returning United centre-back looked perplexed but it means he’ll now miss the next three games. It might also mean that Michael Carrick is without Martinez and Harry Maguire for the Chelsea game on the weekend.
Bruno Fernandes: ‘I don’t want to talk’
Martinez had saved United from going three-nil down in the first half. But he went from hero to zero after he was sent off although Fernandes seemed to suggest it was the wrong decision.
The Reds’ skipper spoke to Sky Sports after the game and wasn’t impressed:
“I don’t want to talk about it because the rules are different for everyone, applied differently for everyone. The difference in the yellow cards, you can also see it. It’s better that I don’t say anything.”
Fernandes helped give United a sign of life by finding Casemiro with a perfect ball. The Brazilian headed home to make it 2-1 in the second half.
It was in vein though as Leeds held on to secure a famous victory over the Red Devils and given Carrick a massive headache. Not only will he lose Martinez for three games but he might be without his first-choice centre-back duo this weekend.
Maguire is serving a suspension for a red card in a 2-2 draw against Bournemouth before the international break. But he could be handed another game ban if the FA decide to further punish him.
A Bizzare Decision
The red card was extremely harsh, and Roy Keane echoed this on Sky Sports. While Martinez does eventually have a hold of Calvert-Lewin’s hair, it’s because he’s knocked off balance by the Leeds striker.
The FA really need to reassess their rule book if they are dishing out red cards like this. It’s a damning indictment of where the game is headed if players are sent off for such incidents.
For United, it was the worst possible night that just opened the door for their top five rivals, who mostly dropped points this weekend. Carrick needs his troops to quickly bounce back when they face Chelsea who are coming off a 3-0 loss to Manchester City.
