Manchester United news as Bruno Fernandes admits Chris Kavanagh's accidental incident prior to penalty frustrated him
Bruno Fernandes
Bruno Fernandes missed from the penalty spot against Fulham
(Image: Getty Images)
Bruno Fernandes has admitted he was "upset" at referee Chris Kavanagh before his missed penalty in Manchester United's 1-1 draw with Fulham on Sunday.
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In the first-half, United were handed an opportunity to open the scoring when Calvin Bassey was penalised for throwing Mason Mount to the ground inside the penalty area.
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Kavanagh didn't initially spot the incident but the video assistant referee (VAR) suggested the referee review the footage on the pitchside screen before a penalty was awarded. Fernandes unfortunately missed, his first spot-kick miss since the end of 2023.
Replays showed that Kavanagh had accidentally bumped into Fernandes as the United captain walked backwards after placing the ball on the spot. Fernandes seemed to question the referee before replacing the ball and firing over the bar.
After the game, Fernandes was asked if the incident had put him off. Questioned if he was upset, he told Sky Sports: "Yeah I was upset. [Like] every penalty taker, you have your own routine and things that you do.
"It upset me because the referee didn't apologise and that was what triggered me in the moment but that's not the excuse to miss a penalty. I just had a very bad hit of the ball, I took my foot too under the ball and that's why it went over the bar."
Amorim was also asked about the incident, but the United boss refused to get drawn into speculation that he was put off. βHe knows the importance that every moment in this context can have a huge impact on the team," he said.
"And I felt that during the game, he was like, not so happy, not so involved, because he has so much responsibility. I think he felt that missed penalty, it was huge for us.β
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