Soccer

Man Utd’s Bruno Fernandes feels challenge on James Maddison ‘never a red card’

Referee Chris Kavanagh showed a straight red card for serious foul play.

Bruno Fernandes feels he should not have been sent off against Spurs
Bruno Fernandes feels he should not have been sent off against Spurs (Martin Rickett/PA)
By Simon Peach, PA Chief Football Writer

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes believes the challenge on James Maddison which got him sent off in Sunday’s 3-0 home defeat by Tottenham was “never a red card”.

A month that started with a heavy Old Trafford loss to rivals Liverpool ended with another humbling by the same scoreline against top-four rivals Spurs.

Brennan Johnson gave the visitors an early lead during a one-sided first half that ended with Fernandes being sent off for a challenge on Maddison.

Referee Chris Kavanagh showed a straight red card for serious foul play – a decision confirmed by VAR Peter Bankes – with Spurs adding further goals after the break through Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke.

On his sending-off, Fernandes told Sky Sports: “Apart from slipping going in, I don’t take him as everyone wants to see it.

“I don’t go with the studs, I take him with my ankle. It’s a clear foul but never a red card. That’s my feeling.

“Even Maddison, when he gets up, you can see in the image… he just said, ‘It’s a foul but it’s never a red card’. That’s what he said.

“I think in the eyes of everyone, you can see that is never a red card because if this is a red card I think we have to look at many other incidents.

“I had many incidents when I get kicked and everything, and I’ve never seen something so quick coming off as a red card. I just think it’s never a red card.”

Asked if he was in shock seeing the red card, Fernandes said: “Yeah, for me, it’s a foul.

“Even the contact is not even that strong. If he wants to give me a yellow because it’s a counter-attack, I agree.

“And then I don’t understand why VAR doesn’t call the referee to the screen. For me, it’s just not a really good decision. That’s all.”

Fernandes will miss next weekend’s trip to Aston Villa in addition to the Premier League matches against Brentford and West Ham as a result of his dismissal.

Erik ten Hag’s side were well beaten at Old Trafford
Erik ten Hag’s side were well beaten at Old Trafford (Martin Rickett/PA)

“Obviously I left my team-mates with one man down, and I do appreciate everything they did on the pitch, which obviously was tougher for them,” said the United skipper, who is available for Thursdays Europa League match at Porto.

“We didn’t start the game well when it was 11 v 11, then obviously the result is on their side and we get the situation with the red card.

“They did very well, they tried. Obviously we conceded another two goals, but it was difficult to cover all of the spaces.

“But I think there is many good things we can take away from this – the resilience of the team was always there and I am really proud of the team.”