Bruno Fernandes slammed by Gary Neville as red card sums up Man Utd: 'An absolute disgrace'

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off just before half-time after his side endured a miserable opening period in their clash with Tottenham on Sunday

Bruno Fernandes was sent off four minutes before half-time of Manchester United's clash with Tottenham as the midfielder's awful season continues.

Though he slipped, Fernandes kicked his leg up towards the knee of James Maddison, leaving the referee with no choice but to send him off. Former United captain Gary Neville delivered a withering verdict of Fernandes' tackle as he slammed the Red Devils.

“It just sums up Manchester United in this first half, to be fair they’ve been an absolute disgrace. It’s one of the worst performances I’ve seen in Erik ten Hag’s time at Manchester United and that’s saying something," he told Sky Sports.

“It’s been really bad. And he will not be able to believe what he’s watched. I’m not talking patterns of play, I’m talking application to a football match. And now, his captain sent off.

"When players react like that, it means something has gone on that we haven't seen initially. He's gone knee high Bruno Fernandes. I think he slips just before the tackle but he's not going to get away with it."

Fernandes became just the fourth United skipper to see red at Old Trafford in the Premier League, following Roy Keane in April 2001 (v Manchester City), Nemanja Vidic in March 2014 (v Liverpool) and Wayne Rooney in September 2014 (v West Ham).

The Portugal international had earlier seen his side fall behind just 2 minutes and 35 seconds into the game when Micky van de Ven burst forward from defence and set Brennan Johnson up for a tap in.

HAVE YOUR SAY! Did Bruno Fernandes deserve a red card for his tackle on James Maddison? Comment below.

Image: Sky Sports) Sky Sports)

Spurs were utterly dominant in the opening period, with United limited to just 37 percent of the possession and having only two shots on target. Former Everton star Leon Osman branded United 'a team in disarray' as they struggled to contain Ange Postecoglou's side.

"It has looked like Tottenham have been playing against 10 men for 40 minutes as they have dominated. We spoke before the game about the significance of winning this fixture," Osman told 5 Live.

"Spurs look like they are a team who are challenging for the top four. United look all over the place, a team which looks in disarray. They are miles off the level which Tottenham showed in that first half."

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