FINALLY: Man Utd handed new Bruno Fernandes red card verdict as Tottenham decision reviewed

Following his straight red card during Sunday’s 3-0 loss to Spurs, Bruno Fernandes will probably miss Manchester United’s match against Aston Villa.

Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher believes match officials made a mistake when they sent Bruno Fernandes out during Manchester United’s 3-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur. Shortly before halftime in Sunday’s defeat, the United captain received a straight red card, the first of his United career.

In trying to follow James Maddison’s run, Fernandes appeared to trip and caught the Spurs player as he went down. The Portuguese international was shown a red card by referee Chris Kavanagh right away, and VAR upheld his ruling, considering it to be a significant foul play.

Fernandes’ absence from the next three Premier League games, which include Sunday’s trip to Aston Villa, is contingent upon the outcome of an appeal, which will put more strain on manager Erik ten Hag.

Speaking on Sky Sports’ Ref Watch, Gallagher hypothesized that there might have been obstructions to the referee’s perspective of the incident. “All right, lots of discussion,” he remarked. That’s the referee’s perspective, and that’s my first issue. I don’t think he can see it.”

“I don’t think the referee sees the challenge happen,” he continued. The Manchester Evening News says, “The assistant flags it; he has a different view and angle.”

Gallagher continued, “If you run it on, this is the assistant’s view, you can understand why the assistant would relay that it’s high and off the ground because he’s caught him high.”

“When you play it through, you see it’s a glancing blow, he doesn’t catch him as he thinks,” Gallagher clarified. I understand why the referee didn’t see it; he had to base his decision on the assistant’s observation that it was high and that he should have caught him, but he didn’t. A yellow card would have been a more acceptable choice; it’s an optical illusion.”

He continued, “I can’t answer it because they talk about the threshold,” in reference to the VAR’s role. Although the assistant has passed on those headsets, the referee hasn’t noticed them. I’m not and never would be a referee’s coach. However, he has time on his side since he has already blown his whistle. If he consults with the assistant, perhaps they will reach the same decision and it will appear more professional.

“At the time, I doubt that many people believed the assistant had any influence. People claim that the referee acted quickly to show the red card. Because of the viewpoint we saw, I believe the referee was led incorrectly when they were lead. I believe you reach a very different conclusion if you pool all of your resources.”

“I believe the assistant’s angle will trick him,” Gallagher went on. He will claim that his foot appeared high from that perspective even though he is unable to observe the moment of impact. He doesn’t think he has accumulated enough momentum or intensity because he has come from such a small distance, which is why it’s not a red card.”

“I can understand the referee not seeing it, but the assistant seeing it conveys that message, but it’s got lost.”