Enzo Maresca said Manchester City “are still waiting for an apology” for Bruno Fernandes’ derby goal in January 2023 after Erling Haaland’s controversial winner at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Erling Haaland scored a controversial winner for Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday.
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Following an opener from Jack Grealish on the hour, Fernandes levelled the 2023 derby with a hugely controversial goal that was wrongly allowed due to Marcus Rashford - who was running over the ball and impacting Kyle Walker’s run - standing in an offside position when the ball was played.
Fernandes’ equaliser sparked an eventual Manchester United comeback and there was every reason to believe the goal shouldn't have stood; the roles were reversed on Sunday when Haaland won the game for Maresca’s side under similar circumstances.
From Josko Gvardiol’s cross, the Norway international was onside only by Patrick Dorgu’s jutted leg, but the concern came from Enzo Fernandez’s positioning and how he could have impacted Lisandro Martinez’s run while offside himself.
The United defender claimed the decision to give a goal was “unacceptable”, while Pro Ref admitted to an “error of judgement” shortly after full-time, saying VAR should have suggested an on-field review.
Maresca: No One Apologised When This Happened in 2023
As City cast their attention to Thursday’s Carabao Cup third round tie against Norwich City, much of Maresca’s press conference on Wednesday was spent dwelling on the events of Sunday.
And while the goal may stick around in conversations for years to come, not least if City are involved in the Premier League title race during the spring run-in, Maresca insisted that football can be for and against anyone.
“Three years ago, when I was here, it happened exactly the same against Man United; we lost the derby there. The goal was not a regular goal, if you remember? And to be honest, no one apologised,” the Manchester City manager said.
“We are still waiting for the apology for that goal. Sometimes it happens for you, sometimes against you. It’s football.”
Haaland in Top Form But Will Most Likely be Rested Against Norwich City
Haaland has now scored six goals in his last four games, grabbing two braces in that period against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park and FC Porto in City's UEFA Champions League opener.
The City forward has played in all of Maresca's competitive games since the Italian succeeded Pep Guardiola this summer, but will almost certainly rest on Thursday in preparation for a congested and extremely difficult schedule over the winter.
In October, City are set to face the likes of Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain in the Premier League and UEFA Champions League respectively, while looking in the distance at back-to-back meetings with SSC Napoli and Arsenal at the end of November.
December offers tougher but equally exciting tests for Maresca, who will hope to guide his troupe to victory against Barcelona before facing his former club Chelsea. With that timetable comes an expectation that Haaland will need extensive rest in between, with Norwich due to be the first of those intervals.