Leny Yoro was not unfortunate to have been sent-off in Manchester United’s loss to Atletico Madrd, says former Premier League referee chief Keith Hackett.
Yoro partnered Lisandro Martinez in the Spanish capital and the pair were tasked with keeping tabs on Atletico strikers Jonathan David and Julian Alvarez.
While Man Utd did have chances to score an equaliser, any hope of leaving the Estadio Metropolitano with at least a point were dashed upon being reduced to 10-men in the 74th minute when Yoro was sent-off.
United head coach Michael Carrick blasted the decision after referee Glenn Nyberg was advised to the VAR screen and check the Frenchman’s foul on David.
However, upon reviewing the incident, Hackett believes it was the correct call due to an “illegal use” of the arm from Yoro when denying David an obvious goalscoring opportunity.
“Manchester United can have no complaint regarding the dismissal of Leny Yoro for the denial of a goalscoring opportunity,” Hackett told Football Insider.
“When the referee visited the monitor, he is looking at, first of all, was a foul committed? The answer is yes. The illegal use of the arm confirmed that and then he has to look at the direction of play.
“Well it was pretty central and distant from goal. Had the player not been fouled, the likelihood of him getting a shot away on goal was high.
“Therefore, for me, the criteria has been fulfilled and the player had to go.”
Shortly after Yoro had been dismissed, Ademola Lookman doubled Atletico’s lead and consigned Man United to a third defeat in five games across all competitions.