Alan Shearer has criticised Bruno Fernandes over his role in Phil Foden's red card during Sunday's Manchester derby, arguing that referee Michael Oliver was wrong to dismiss only the Manchester City forward.
Foden was sent off in the 23rd minute after kicking out at Manchester United captain Fernandes, leaving City with 10 men for the majority of the match. Foden's reaction came after Fernandes appeared to kick him while he was on the ground, before the Portuguese midfielder writhed around in pain.
Despite the incident involving both players, only Foden was punished, a decision Shearer said was wrong.
"I thought the way Bruno Fernandes went down was pathetic," Shearer said on The Rest Is Football. "He helped get Foden off and, yes, he's kicked out at him a little bit but Bruno Fernandes has also kicked Phil Foden."
"If Phil Foden reacts in the same way as Bruno Fernandes did then both get red cards. So, for me, either both are red or neither of them are."
Shearer, the former England and Newcastle United striker, is a co-host of The Rest Is Football podcast alongside Gary Lineker and Micah Richards, and is a regular pundit on major Premier League matches.
He added: "He's kicked out, so he's stupid, OK? But Bruno Fernandes has done the same thing so for me, without doubt, they both should've been a red card if Michael Oliver thinks Phil Foden's is a red card."
Other pundits react
Shearer was not alone in criticising Fernandes. Former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor went further in his assessment of the United captain, calling him a "cheat" on talkSPORT.
"At the end of the day, Bruno Fernandes is a cheat," Agbonlahor said. "He's an outstanding player, but he's a cheat. You've kicked Foden twice on the floor, which should have been a red card to you. Then Foden's lashed out a tiny little bit and you're rolling around when you're not hurt."
"A proper referee goes over and says: 'You two, cut it out, a yellow each, play on'. It's never a red card," he said.
Agbonlahor also suggested United's controversial win in the match amounted to "karma" for the sending-off. "That's why you get your karma. Maybe the goal that should've been disallowed on Haaland, is the karma you sometimes get in football for the red card to Phil Foden," he said.
The Haaland goal controversy
The "karma" Agbonlahor referred to relates to Erling Haaland's winning goal, which was awarded despite Enzo Fernandez appearing to interfere with play while in an offside position. The goal stood after a VAR check, but the Premier League's independent refereeing body, Pro Ref, later admitted the decision was wrong and apologised to Manchester United on Sunday evening.
In a statement, Pro Ref said: "Following the incident in the 60th minute of Sunday's Premier League fixture between Manchester United and Manchester City at Old Trafford, we can provide clarification regarding Erling Haaland's awarded goal."
"The on-field decision was offside against Erling Haaland, that was checked by VAR and he was found to be in an onside position. In the same attack, it was established that Enzo Fernandez did not play the ball and therefore that makes any offside offence subjective, however, on this occasion, the VAR did not recognise the likely impact of his position and should have recommended an on-field review."
Pro Ref confirmed it had contacted Manchester United to acknowledge what it called "an error of judgement" and said a review of the incident would take place.
