Louis van Gaal defended Marouane Fellaini after the United midfielder appeared to spit at Sergio Aguero during the Manchester derby.
In a typically heated clash between two of English football's most bitter rivals, Fellaini became irate with Manchester City striker Aguero in an incident towards the end of the first half.
The Argentine tumbled to the floor after the Belgian kicked his standing leg and the hosts appealed for a penalty, which was not given.
Fellaini clearly did not feel it was a foul and he bent down to shout at his rival as he lay face down on the floor.
Some spit appeared to exit the Belgian's mouth as he unleashed his tirade at Aguero, but Van Gaal insists it was not intentional and seemed to suggest Fellaini was not that type of player.
'The TV has shown that he is shouting and sometimes when you shout there's a little bit of saliva (that comes out) with it,' the United boss said.
'I don't think that he's a spitting figure.'
Van Gaal's opposite number Manuel Pellegrini said he was not aware of the incident.
Fellaini was involved in a similar incident in March's Manchester derby when he appeared to spit at the grounded Pablo Zabaleta after elbowing the City defender. The referee on that occasion was Oliver.
Fellaini played poorly at the Etihad Stadium, missing a good chance to snatch a point for United in the second half when he shouldered the ball wide when attempting a header.
Aguero, on the other hand, impressed throughout and scored the winning goal in the 63rd minute when he converted Gael Clichy's cross.
The FA will wait to see if Oliver mentions the incident in his report before deciding whether to take any action against Fellaini.
If the alleged spit was not seen by the referee or any of his assistants, the FA video review panel could take disciplinary action against the Belgian if they think it was a deliberate act. In March, they eventually chose to take no action.
Van Gaal, however, was less than impressed with Chris Smalling, who he branded 'stupid' for his sending off in the Manchester derby and said the defender had apologised to team-mates.
Smalling lunged in on James Milner to pick up a second yellow card from referee Michael Oliver two minutes before half time, having been cautioned earlier for blocking Joe Hart's kick.
It greatly undermined his team's task at the Etihad Stadium with the score 0-0 and City eventually scored through Aguero to condemn United to a third defeat of the season.
'In a derby you have to be careful - the second yellow card is a stupid yellow card,' said Van Gaal.
'The first I didn't see but as player with a yellow card you have to deal with that.
'You cannot do what he has done with the second yellow card. That's not very smart. He said (sorry) and is very humble. You can only accept it. Nevertheless it is, in my opinion, not so smart.'
'As a player you have to control your aggression. I said that to the players.'
Pellegrini, on the other hand, was happy to see his team end their three-match winless run.
'I am very pleased with the performance. It is always important to win a derby, especially against this Manchester United team which is a great team with great players,' Pellegrini said.
'We played really well all the match except the last 10 minutes with less intensity but I am really happy about the result.'
Pellegrini's only gripe was with referee Oliver, who waved away several penalty shouts.
The most plausible appeal came in first half injury time when Rojo kicked Toure as he was about to shoot from 10 yards following a masterful chip by Aguero.
'It is unbelievable we didn't get a penalty (for the foul) against Yaya Toure,' Pellegrini added.
'It was not only a penalty but also a sending off because was the last man.
'There were two others against Sergio but we are not talking about that.'
The result will strengthen the argument of those who say City are now the best team in Manchester.
This was their fourth successive win against United. The last time that happened was 44 years ago.
Pellegrini's men now trail leaders Chelsea by six points.
Fellaini clearly did not feel it was a foul and he bent down to shout at his rival as he lay face down on the floor.
Some spit appeared to exit the Belgian's mouth as he unleashed his tirade at Aguero, but Van Gaal insists it was not intentional and seemed to suggest Fellaini was not that type of player.
'The TV has shown that he is shouting and sometimes when you shout there's a little bit of saliva (that comes out) with it,' the United boss said.
'I don't think that he's a spitting figure.'
Van Gaal's opposite number Manuel Pellegrini said he was not aware of the incident.
Fellaini was involved in a similar incident in March's Manchester derby when he appeared to spit at the grounded Pablo Zabaleta after elbowing the City defender. The referee on that occasion was Oliver.
Fellaini played poorly at the Etihad Stadium, missing a good chance to snatch a point for United in the second half when he shouldered the ball wide when attempting a header.
Aguero, on the other hand, impressed throughout and scored the winning goal in the 63rd minute when he converted Gael Clichy's cross.
The FA will wait to see if Oliver mentions the incident in his report before deciding whether to take any action against Fellaini.
If the alleged spit was not seen by the referee or any of his assistants, the FA video review panel could take disciplinary action against the Belgian if they think it was a deliberate act. In March, they eventually chose to take no action.
Van Gaal, however, was less than impressed with Chris Smalling, who he branded 'stupid' for his sending off in the Manchester derby and said the defender had apologised to team-mates.
Smalling lunged in on James Milner to pick up a second yellow card from referee Michael Oliver two minutes before half time, having been cautioned earlier for blocking Joe Hart's kick.
It greatly undermined his team's task at the Etihad Stadium with the score 0-0 and City eventually scored through Aguero to condemn United to a third defeat of the season.
'In a derby you have to be careful - the second yellow card is a stupid yellow card,' said Van Gaal.
'The first I didn't see but as player with a yellow card you have to deal with that.
'You cannot do what he has done with the second yellow card. That's not very smart. He said (sorry) and is very humble. You can only accept it. Nevertheless it is, in my opinion, not so smart.'
'As a player you have to control your aggression. I said that to the players.'
Pellegrini, on the other hand, was happy to see his team end their three-match winless run.
'I am very pleased with the performance. It is always important to win a derby, especially against this Manchester United team which is a great team with great players,' Pellegrini said.
'We played really well all the match except the last 10 minutes with less intensity but I am really happy about the result.'
Pellegrini's only gripe was with referee Oliver, who waved away several penalty shouts.
The most plausible appeal came in first half injury time when Rojo kicked Toure as he was about to shoot from 10 yards following a masterful chip by Aguero.
'It is unbelievable we didn't get a penalty (for the foul) against Yaya Toure,' Pellegrini added.
'It was not only a penalty but also a sending off because was the last man.
'There were two others against Sergio but we are not talking about that.'
The result will strengthen the argument of those who say City are now the best team in Manchester.
This was their fourth successive win against United. The last time that happened was 44 years ago.
Pellegrini's men now trail leaders Chelsea by six points.
No comments:
Post a Comment