Roy Keane Credit: Imago
Manchester United have not stopped moaning about Lisandro Martinez’s red card in their 2-1 defeat against Leeds United at Old Trafford on Monday night.
Martinez was sent off for pulling at Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair bun, and while it may have been harsh, referee Paul Tierney followed the letter of the law.
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Manchester United manager Michael Carrick termed it one of the worst decisions he has seen. However, Manchester United are unlikely to see the FA overturn the decision in an appeal.
However, Roy Keane is surprised by his former team’s reaction to the red card and slammed them for using it as an excuse for a poor performance against Leeds.
Roy Keane ‘amazed’ by Manchester United’s reaction after the Leeds defeat
Martinez looked baffled when he was sent off. However, Roy Keane has conceded that while it was harsh, it was the right call given the precedent set earlier in the season.
But the former Manchester United captain admitted that he was surprised by how angry the Red Devils were about the decision after the game.
He stressed that Manchester United should have been angrier at their performance and were already 2-0 down when the Argentine defender was shown the red card.
Keane said on The Overlap: “I can see why he gave it, but this idea of violent conduct is harsh.
“If they sent Michael Keane off for Everton a couple of months ago, he didn’t really grab it, but he got a red card for it.
“I’m amazed after the game [Manchester] United, everyone’s angry about the sending off, you should be angry with the performance.
“It’s like a distraction, you were 2-0 down at the time.”
Leeds deserved some luck
Leeds may have had a few decisions go their way at Old Trafford, but that shouldn’t overshadow how well they played, as they were the better team on the night.
Even Calvert-Lewin admitted he wasn’t sure Lisandro Martinez intended to pull his hair, despite it resulting in a red card.
There was also an elbow on Yoro that could have been given as a foul on another day, but by that stage, Leeds were already in control.
After some frustrating calls earlier in the season, Leeds fans will feel they finally got a bit of luck, though their performance fully justified the result.
And honestly, Manchester United are hardly in a position to complain about refereeing decisions at Old Trafford.