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Erik ten Hag accuses the referee for controversial substitutions in Sevilla draw.
In Thursday’s 2-2 draw with Sevilla, Erik ten Hag claimed he was forced to substitute both Bruno Fernandes and Antony because the referee had informed him both players were on the verge of receiving red cards.
With two goals from Marcel Sabitzer in the first 20 minutes, United quickly took control of the game and raced to a 2-0 lead. However, late own goals from Tyrell Malacia and Harry Maguire forced a 2-2 draw, setting up a tense second leg away from home the following week.
Fernandes, Antony, and starting striker Anthony Martial were all replaced during the second half, and during the game, fans angrily questioned the three substitutions.
In his post-match press conference, Ten Hag argued he was left with no choice but to withdraw Fernandes and Antony after the referee warned him that the duo were close to being shown second yellow cards.
“I had to make them,” Ten Hag argued. “There was no other way. Rapha [Varane] was injured, that was the first I had to make. And then Anthony Martial, first start after a long period, so we had to make him on the 60.
“Then Bruno: I got the warning from the refs, he was short before a second booking and the same for Antony dos Santos. So I had to make the subs, I had no other choice.”
When Lisandro Martinez fell late in the game and was carried off the field by the Argentine’s international colleagues from Sevilla, United had no replacements left after also seeing Varane limp off at halftime.
All the unwanted changes took their toll on United, with Ten Hag telling BT Sport: “We had the game in our hand. We were 2-0 up and should’ve scored three or four – the game was totally on us. Unlucky moments with injuries, we had to make some subs with injuries then we lost the control.
“We conceded two own goals, that’s bad luck but we have to deal with it. We have to learn and have to kill the game but everything is open.
“When we didn’t get the third and got some injuries we lost the rhythm in the game. We played well in the first half with a lot of belief, scored two great goals for Sabitzer and we could’ve scored even more, then after half time we lost control of the game.
“I know we can do better with these players in the last part of the game and we needed to be more composed, it was not a nice night.”