Aleksandar Mitrovic sent off for pushing ref as Fulham get three reds

Manchester United’s FA Cup quarter-final with Fulham descended into chaos as Willian, Aleksander Mitrovic and Marco Silva saw red in the space of a minute. The Brazilian had handballed Jadon Sancho’s shot on the line with referee Chris Kavanagh awarding a penalty and red card after a VAR check. The striker reacted furiously, pushing the official to earn himself a sending-off of his own while Silva had received his marching orders for shouting at the ref as he consulted the monitor. 

Fulham had been in the driving seat at Old Trafford with Mitrovic giving the away side the lead towards the start of the second half. However, the west Londoners completely imploded in seconds after Willian’s goal line handball. 

Initially, Kavanagh awarded a corner kick after thinking the ball had hit the former Chelsea and Arsenal man in the chest but he was quickly sent to the VAR monitor to correct his decision. Fulham manager Silva was first down the tunnel with the official sending him off after he continued to shout at him as he looked at the screen. 

Following a few replays Kavanagh decided he would change his decision awarding a penalty as he returned to the field and sending Willian off for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity. 

Mitrovic reacted furiously and pushed the official, instantly receiving his marching orders. He continued to scream into the referee’s face and had to be calmed down by team mates and coaching staff who eventually managed to escort him off the field. 

The three red cards came in the space of 40 seconds with Fulham having to see out the rest of the match with just nine men. 

The penalty was duly dispatched by Bruno Fernandes with Marcel Sabitzer giving United the lead two minutes later. The Portugal international rounded off the scoring in injury time as United made their numerical superiority count. 

Roy Keane was quick to berate Fulham after the match Mitrovic, Willian and Silva had cost their side a chance in the FA Cup semi-finals. 

“It was self-destruction there really with the incident, particularly for the penalty, and then the reaction from the manager and the players,” he told ITV. “Obviously it’s an emotional game, we’ve all been there, but it’s a mad 90 seconds that’s cost them the game.

“Gabriel [Clarke] made the point there, it’s not necessarily about United winning the game, it’s about obviously Fulham finding a way to lose, so I have no sympathy for Fulham. They can get one or two plaudits, they won’t be getting any of them from me. They had an opportunity and they blew it”.