Michael Carrick believes his players were robbed. Erling Haaland’s goal on the hour ended a Manchester derby that had swung Manchester United’s way from the moment Phil Foden was sent off, and it survived a long VAR check that the United head coach could not accept.
The final score at Old Trafford on Sunday was 1-0 to Manchester City. The 199th meeting of the two clubs finished with the visitors down to ten men from the 23rd minute and still walking off with three points.
Josko Gvardiol’s deflected cross was the trigger. Haaland arrived at the far post to sweep it in, but Enzo Fernandez had thrown himself at the ball a fraction earlier from an offside position. Referee Michael Oliver let the goal stand after a lengthy review in which the officials ruled the Argentine had not interfered with play.
Carrick: “I just don’t get it”
Carrick’s post-match interview turned into a point-by-point takedown of that call.
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“The explanation was that he wasn’t interfering with play. I just don’t get it. I can’t understand,” Carrick said.
“If that’s how the rules are interpreted, that you’re not interfering with play when you’ve thrown yourself at the ball, six yards from goal and pretty much nearly touched it, which means Licha has to react from that.”
“I think it’s as obvious as it gets.”
Lisandro Martinez, the defender left flat-footed by Fernandez’s attempted flick, called the decision an “injustice” in his own post-match interview.
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The red card that City lived with
Foden’s dismissal had looked like the story of the afternoon before Haaland’s intervention. Bruno Fernandes clipped the City forward inside the United half, then caught him a second time as Foden was on the ground. Foden lashed out with his boot into Fernandes’s midriff and Oliver produced a straight red without hesitation.
Enzo Maresca did not argue with the sending off, but he did argue with what happened next to Fernandes.
“I reviewed the action immediately after the red card on the bench and it’s a clear red card for Phil because it’s a reaction,” the City head coach said.
“So, for me, yes, it’s a red card for Phil, but it’s also a red card for Bruno.”
Fernandes stayed on the pitch. City reorganised. The near-£250m midfield pair of Elliot Anderson and Enzo Fernandez took over the middle, and Haaland’s ninth goal in the fixture eventually broke the game open.
Maresca: “What a chaos”
Maresca described the swing bluntly to NBC Sports.
“What a chaos. With the red card changed our plan a little bit but credit to the players.”
City sit atop the Premier League and are matching Arsenal’s unbeaten start to the season. It was Carrick’s first derby since his appointment was made permanent in May after the interim spell that followed Ruben Amorim’s sacking in January.
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