Why Man City’s Phil Foden Was Flashed Red Card in Feisty Manchester Derby

It took no time at all for the season’s first Manchester derby to turn bitter and feisty.

Manchester City’s Phil Foden was flashed a red card in the 23rd minute after a tussle with Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes, kicking the Portuguese star midfielder to the ground near the sideline after a hard tackle.

It was a contentious call at Old Trafford, given Fernandes was shown kicking the backside of a fallen Foden prior to the latter’s two-footed kick. Fernandes walked away from the play without a card, though, resulting in City’s new manager Enzo Maresca throwing his hands up in anger. It proved a rocky start to the Italian boss’s maiden Manchester derby at the helm, given his side was left down a man even prior to the half-hour mark.

It signified the first red card in a Manchester derby in 20 years. City’s Bernardo Corradi was last shown a red for diving back in 2006, in a clash also at Old Trafford. It marked just the second red card of Foden’s career, the first of which came back in 2019 in Champions League play against Atalanta.