Michael Carrick describes Lisandro Martinez’s red card call as ‘one of the most questionable he’s encountered’

Michael Carrick has described the decision to dismiss Lisandro Martínez during Manchester United’s surprising 2-1 loss to Leeds United on Monday night as one of the most egregious he has ever witnessed.

Noah Okafor shocked Old Trafford in the first half with two goals, leading Leeds United to their first Premier League victory over Manchester United in more than 23 years.

Casemiro’s goal in the second half reduced the deficit, but the home team could not rally for a comeback as their long-standing rivals Leeds secured all three points at a crucial moment in the season.

It was the decision to send Martínez off that particularly angered Carrick, as the defender received a red card early in the second half after VAR detected him pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair.

“For two consecutive matches, we’ve faced decisions like that against us, but that one was among the worst I’ve seen.

“You can elbow Leny Yoro for the first goal, leaning arm obviously, you can throw your arm in Martínez’s face and then as he’s off balance because of that, he’s half grappling, he half touches the back of his hair which pulls the bobble to come out,” he stated in a post-match interview with Sky Sports.

“I can’t even comprehend what it looks like. It’s not a pull, it’s not a tug, it’s not aggressive. He merely touches it and gets sent off.

“Most troubling of all, he gets sent to overturn it, a clear and obvious error. Shocking.”

Carrick’s team missed the opportunity to extend their lead over sixth place to 10 points, while Leeds’ victory marked only their second away win in the Premier League this season.