ByAdwaidh Rajan. BBC Sport journalist. 13 April 2026. 1694 Comments. Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez was sent off for pulling the hair of Leeds United striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin in their 2-1 loss at Old Trafford – with manager Michael Carrick calling it “one of the worst” decisions he has seen.. Martinez, 28, was shown a straight red by referee Paul Tierney and will now face a three-match suspension, although Carrick suggested afterwards the club could appeal against the decision.. The hosts were trailing 2-0 to Noah Okafor’s first-half double when the Argentine tried to stop Leeds striker Calvert-Lewin by holding his hairin an off-the-ball incident, after being caught in the face himself.. Tierney was instructed to review the incident on the pitchside monitor by the video assistant referee (VAR) before sending off Martinez.. “After review, Manchester United 6 is guilty of pulling his hair – violent conduct. Final decision is red card,” Tierney announced to the stadium.. The Premier League Match Centre posted on X: “After VAR review, the referee issued a red card to Martinez for violent conduct.”. But Carrick was left fuming at the dismissal, saying: “That decision was one of the worst I’ve ever seen. He [Calvert-Lewin] can throw his arms in Licha’s [Martinez’s] face – and then he’s sent off. Shocking.. “I don’t even know what it looks like. It’s not a pull, it’s not a tug, it’s not aggressive. He touches it and he gets sent off.. “Worse of all, he gets sent to overturn it, a clear and obvious error. Shocking. He is off balance and grappling.. “We have got to be careful where the game is going. It is a shocking decision, absolutely shocking.”. Jeers and defensive crisis – Carrick facing first big Man Utd test. 8 hours ago. A monumental night for Leeds – what does it mean in survival scrap?. 9 hours ago. Image source, Getty Images. ‘I felt my hair get pulled’. Red Devils captain Bruno Fernandes declined to comment on the officials for fear of getting in trouble, but Calvert-Lewin insisted his hair was pulled.. He said: “I don’t know, I don’t make the rules. I felt my hair get pulled, told the ref, he makes the decisions. Unfortunate for [Martinez], whether he’s meant it or not. I hold no grudges.”. Leeds boss Daniel Farke said: “I was worried because we had such good momentum and sometimes such a situation can change the momentum.. “I would have preferred to play 11 v 11 but it is how it is. But in the end we won the game and I don’t complain.”. Former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane and ex-Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher sympathised with Carrick’s side.. Keane told Sky Sports: “I can see both sides. When you class this as violent conduct this seems really harsh. It is harsh but when looking at the laws you have to accept it.”. While Carragher added: “I think that is soft. He is going for the ball, trying to grab hold of something and he has got it for half a second… I don’t think any football fan, any player is thinkin
