Sports13 September, 20262 min read
Phil Foden’s Red Card Sends Manchester City Past Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford
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Foden sent off in the first half for kicking Bruno Fernandes. Haaland scored the winner as City beat United 1-0 with 10 men.
Derby turns on VAR
Manchester City beat Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford after Phil Foden was shown a red card in the first half for kicking out at Bruno Fernandes, leaving City to play with 10 men. Michael Oliver showed Foden the red card for kicking out at Fernandes, and the match swung again when Erling Haaland scored on the hour mark from Josko Gvardiol's cross.
The goal was then thrown into doubt by offside controversy involving Enzo Fernandez, with Sky Sports noting that “VAR has described it as a kick with both feet into the stomach” when discussing the earlier sending-off. United hit the post twice through Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo either side of half-time, but the winner stood after a lengthy VAR check and the semi-automated offside technology ruled Haaland onside.
Carrick, Neville, Martinez
After the defeat, Michael Carrick said the explanation for the decision “makes it even worse,” telling Sky Sports, “I couldn’t understand it once I’ve seen it and the explanation makes it even worse.” Carrick also argued that United had tried to help referees, saying, “We put things in place in the game now to help referees, how many screens, how many people.”
Gary Neville, on Sky Sports co-commentary, said, “When they look back on this, they will recognise they got this wrong,” as he discussed the Haaland winner and Enzo Fernandez’s offside position. Lisandro Martinez told Sky Sports, “I think (Enzo Fernandez) was offside,” adding, “What I can't understand is the rules.”
Next matches and fallout
The result kept Manchester City on a perfect start under Enzo Maresca, with Sky Sports saying City had “joined Arsenal as Premier League title race pace setters with maximum points from four games.” NBC Sports reported that City host Norwich City of the Championship on Thursday at 7.30pm BST (2.30pm ET), before returning to the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium against Sunderland on September 20 at 2pm BST (9am ET).
For Manchester United, NBC Sports said they are back at Old Trafford on Wednesday to face Brighton in the third round of the EFL Cup at 8pm BST (3pm ET), and their final Premier League before the first international break is at Fulham on September 20 at 4.30pm BST (11.30am ET). BBC Sport’s player ratings highlighted the derby’s turning point, with Phil Foden rated 5 after being given a straight red after kicking Fernandes in the stomach on 23 minutes, while Erling Haaland was rated 7 for coming alive to open the scoring with a cool, first-time finish.