Manchester United players were left outraged by one refereeing decision made in the defeat to Brentford.
Brentford beat Manchester United 4-3 on Sunday afternoon, meaning the Red Devils have now gone six Premier League games without a win.
Ruben Amorim had one eye on the second leg against Athletic Club in the Europa League on Thursday night with his team selection against Brentford, but the United boss will still be frustrated by another poor result.
Looking back on the performance, there was one incident in the first half which could have completely changed the outcome of the match.
Mark Clattenburg says whether play should have stopped in Man United vs Brentford
Luke Shaw had a disastrous performance and his own goal handed Brentford an equaliser. Just six minutes later, Kevin Schade fired the hosts into the lead but his goal was clouded with controversy.
Schade latched onto a cross that was delivered just moments after Matthijs de Ligt went down injured, clutching his knee.
Referee Anthony Taylor didn’t stop play, and Brentford played on and took advantage of United being a man down.
United in Focus spoke exclusively to former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg about the incident, and his stance is clear.
“Matthijs de Ligt goes down injured after challenging his opponent for the ball. The referee had to deem if the player has a head injury or a serious injury to immediately stop the match.
“Anthony Taylor, the referee, decides that De Ligt has neither so allows the game to continue.
“It’s then up to Brentford – not the referee – to decide if they want to kick the ball out. I agree with the referee that the game must continue and the referee has no fault regarding Brentford’s second goal.”
Ruben Amorim comments on Matthijs de Ligt injury
It is no secret that United’s top priority this season is winning the Europa League.
Sunday’s match against Brentford was about giving experience to younger players and looking to improve on performances. There were certainly signs of that despite the defeat, but the biggest blow was the injury suffered by De Ligt.
De Ligt made his return against Athletic Club following a month on the sidelines. The nature of his injury against Brentford looked worrying, with the Dutch defender going down clutching his knee.
After the full-time whistle, Amorim spoke about De Ligt’s injury and expressed concern.
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When asked about the severity of the injury, Amorim replied: “I don’t know so I’m really concerned – not about Thursday.
“We took off Luke Shaw at half-time to protect and have players for Thursday, but I’m more concerned whether it is a small or big injury and thinking about next season.”
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/r8ZRBmy