Carrick: “I Don’t Think That Was a Red-Card Offence”

Manchester United manager Michael Carrick expressed his disappointment after his side’s 2-0 defeat to Atlético Madrid in the second round of the Champions League. He made no secret of his disagreement with the dismissal of defender Leny Yoro, who was shown a straight red card in the 74th minute following a disputed challenge on Jonathan David.

Here is what Carrick said after the match:

“I don’t think that was a red-card offence. I completely disagree with the decision. The action wasn’t at high speed, and the push itself was extremely slight. We started the match poorly, which made our task even more difficult. Despite that, we had two excellent opportunities to equalise and improved as the game went on, but the sending-off had a huge impact on the final result.

“Missed chances are part of football, and the responsibility does not fall on individual players alone. The important thing is to keep creating opportunities while also becoming more solid defensively. After conceding an early goal, we responded well, controlled certain phases of the game and found ourselves one-on-one with the opposition goalkeeper several times in a really difficult match. We did some good things, although we also left spaces for the opposition to exploit.

“I haven’t watched the interview, but those comments came from raw emotion and disappointment with the result. Now is not the time to discuss those issues. The most important thing is to get back on our feet. I have no doubts about his desire to win. When results are poor, it is normal for there to be things that need addressing, but the willingness to work is there,” Carrick said when asked about Lisandro Martínez’s comments.