Carrick ‘baffled’ by inconsistent penalty calls as Man Utd held

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Carrick

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Michael Carrick described the inconsistency of penalty decisions in Manchester United’s 2-2 draw at Bournemouth as “crazy” after his side twice blew a lead on Friday.

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United took the lead from the spot through Bruno Fernandes but were denied a second penalty when Amad Diallo went down inside the box under a challenge from Adrien Truffert.

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Bournemouth immediately broke to equalise when Truffert teed up Ryan Christie to level.

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A James Hill own goal restored United’s lead before Harry Maguire was sent-off and conceded a penalty for bringing down Evanilson.

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The contact on the Brazilian striker was remarkably similar to that ignored by the officials for Truffert’s challenge on Diallo.

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However, VAR did not intervene on any of the calls to ask referee Stuart Attwell to review his decisions.

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“To give one and not give the other, I just can’t get my head around – it’s crazy,” said Carrick.

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“I can understand that decision (to send off Maguire) but we should have had another penalty and the game would have been different.

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“I thought that was what VAR was for, to clear things up and consistency.

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“It’s two different decisions, so a bit baffling really.”

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Despite the disappointment of not stretching clear in third place in the Premier League, United remain well-placed for a return to the Champions League next season.

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With a top-five finish almost certain to secure a place in Europe’s elite competition, they lead sixth-placed Chelsea by seven points.

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United are not in action again for over three-and-a-half weeks as an international break is followed by the FA Cup quarter-finals.

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“We could have had more tonight but it’s not the end of the world,” added Carrick.

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“We’ll come back stronger after the break.”

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