Man United receive new red card verdict as Michael Carrick slams decisions

Manchester United interim head coach Michael Carrick was left furious by decisions made during the 2-1 defeat to Leeds on Monday night

Michael Carrick cut an angry figure at full time as Manchester United returned to Premier League action with a defeat to Leeds. The interim head coach’s major gripes came with referee Paul Tierney and his team, including VAR’s John Brooks. The interim head coach was angered by the decision to send off Lisandro Martinez after he was adjudged to have pulled Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair.

However, Carrick was also furious Noah Okafor’s first goal was allowed to stand after Calvert-Lewin collided with Leny Yoro in the build-up. “He [Martinez] gets an arm in the face to start with, so he’s off balance and they’re grappling, and then he almost just goes to touch him and grab his shirt,” Carrick said.

“And he ends up catching his hair, and touching the back of his hair. Then the bobble comes out and you get a red card for it. It’s not aggressive, there’s no jolt, no tug, no sudden movement, he kind of touches it, glances through it, and we’ve got to be careful with where the game is going if you’re getting red cards for that.

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“But then you can do two arms in the face for the first goal, and that is deemed alright. It’s a shocking decision, an absolutely shocking decision.

“When you go one-goal down, it makes it a little bit more difficult, and I have to say the goal itself, Leny Yoro gets an arm smashed in the back of his head. That’s worth looking at again if you haven’t seen that.

“I don’t know how that doesn’t get overturned as a goal, it’s a clear smash in the side of his head, so that first goal shouldn’t stand, and it puts us in a difficult situation. It’s two decisions for me, the first goal, if that is overturned, it’s a massive moment, he’s kind of gone like that [gestures a push] to Leny’s head. But the red card, I have to say, that is really concerning.”

So with this in mind, MEN Sport has asked our United writers for their verdicts on the two decisions.

Steven Railston

Carrick was adamant that Leeds’ first goal should have been chalked off for a foul on Yoro. Calvert-Lewin’s arm is slightly raised, but it doesn’t look obvious when the replay is shown at normal speed. I’d argue that Yoro had to be stronger, and someone like Harry Maguire would have cleared the header.

The second incident, the Martinez red card, has dominated headlines because the decision is very soft, but the precedent set by the PGMOL means that he was bound to be sent off once VAR had spotted it. The hair-pulling debate came to the fore in 2022 when Tottenham captain Romero pulled the hair of Chelsea defender Cucurella at a corner. Mike Dean was on VAR, and he failed to send referee Anthony Taylor to the monitor.

That was deemed a mistake by the PGMOL. Southampton defender Jack Stephens was shown a straight red card for a hair pull in December 2024. Everton defender Michael Keane was also sent off for a hair pull in January.

It was daft from Martinez to pull on Calvert-Lewin’s ponytail. It might have been accidental, but you’re leaving yourself open to a sending off if you touch an opponent’s hair.

Having said that, it’s obvious that Martinez’s action was not violent conduct. The action was not forceful, and seemingly not intentional.

Jack Flintham

I am not convinced the first one is anything more than a soft foul, if that. We all know Calvert-Lewin is a physical striker with a similar style to Benjamin Sesko.

If it is given as a foul, I don’t think it would have been overturned but, likewise, VAR is not getting involved with that decision to prevent Okafor’s opener. The two players come together and he does impede Yoro but I can see why VAR did not get involved to avoid re-refereeing the game.

Initially, I thought Martinez was rightfully sent off. The defender does grab Calvert-Lewin’s hair, intentionally or otherwise.

But, the International Football Association Board’s (IFAB) rules state it is a red card, unless the force is ‘negligible’. In my opinion, the tug was not prolonged, he was not dragged to the ground aggressively and while the bobble was removed, it seems harsh to send him off for that.