Roy Keane was one of the many people not impressed after Lisandro Martinez was sent off for a hair-pull in Man United’s 2-1 defeat to Leeds at Old Trafford.
It was Michael Carrick’s side’s first game in 24 days after an extended break where they had a training camp at Carton House, and they looked very rusty in the opening stages.
Without Kobbie Mainoo through injury and Harry Maguire through suspension, United looked very vulnerable in midfield and defence, and Leeds were good for their 2-0 lead at halftime as Noah Okafor scored twice, but in all honesty, it could’ve been 3 or 4-0 to the visitors.
United were able to grab one back through Casemiro, but it wasn’t enough as Leeds inflicted Carrick’s second defeat since becoming United manager as the race for Champions League football heats up.
Despite the huge win for Leeds, which put them 6 points ahead of Spurs in the relegation zone, the main talking point was around Lisandro Martinez’s red card early in the second half.
The Argentine was sent off by referee Paul Tierney after a lengthy VAR review, where he judged that Martinez pulled the hair of Leeds striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin. It seemed very innocuous, but Tierney applied the rules as subscribed and sent off Martinex while the game was 2-0, preventing any real chance of a Red Devils comeback.
It was a red card that infuriated the home crowd at Old Trafford as well as Man United manager Michael Carrick, who described why he believed the sending off was ‘absolutely shocking.’
‘He goes to grab his shirt and ends up touching his hair, and the bobble comes out, and you end up getting a red card for it.
‘It’s not aggressive, there’s no jolt, there’s no tug, no sudden movement. He kind of touches it and glances through it.
‘We’ve got to be careful where the game’s going if we’re giving red cards for that.
‘Two arms in the face for their first goal, and that’s deemed alright. It’s a shocking decision, an absolutely shocking decision.’
He wasn’t alone in that sentiment, as while on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, ex-United captain Roy Keane joined Carrick in believing it was a soft red card.
Despite Keane’s apparent tiff with Carrick’s wife recently, the 8-time Premier League Champion agreed with Carrick and explained why red cards like that are one of the reasons why he wouldn’t last in modern football.
‘The game’s gone. Back in my day, that wouldn’t even be a yellow card – and how did the other guy [Calvert-Lewin] not get booked as well?
‘He grabbed Martinez’s face too, and I don’t think he should get off scot-free. Honestly, I can’t imagine playing in this era… I’d probably be sent off every match.’
