ANGRY Manchester City stars confronted ref Stuart Attwell in the tunnel afterwards over the “joke” goal that sparked United’s 2-1 comeback win.
Jack Grealish, manager Pep Guardiola and Red Devils’ sub Harry Maguire were reportedly involved in the fall-out from Bruno Fernandes’ controversial equaliser.
City were furious Marcus Rashford was not ruled offside and interfering with play in a turning point for the Old Trafford derby.
Rashford himself then completed a 2-1 Red Devils’ triumph which means leaders Arsenal will go eight points clear of City if they win at Spurs on Sunday.
Ex-Middlesbrough Norway frontman Jan Åge Fjørtoft says City scorer Grealish was “not aggressive” in the tunnel exchange but acted “‘very disappointed’.
And Fjørtoft described Maguire as “talking a bit” as City continued to vent their frustration.
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Kyle Walker and Manuel Akanji are thought to have been amongst the other visiting players who raged at Attwell and his assistants following the final whistle.
Akanji later blasted the “joke” decision over Fernandes’ leveller, claiming Rashford had been “clearly offside”.
The England striker chased Casemiro’s pass but eventually left it for Fernandes to lash home.
But City are convinced Rashford’s actions affected the ability of centre-backs Akanji and Nathan Ake to challenge properly.
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And assistant ref Darren Cann initially flagged for offside when Fernandes’ shot went in.
Attwell, however, allowed the goal to stand after discussing the call with Cann.
Akanji said: “The first goal is a joke. Rashford is clearly offside so I played him offside.
“He runs to the last second and only stops because Bruno is coming in behind him.
“I understand he doesn’t touch the ball but he runs for 30 metres, chasing the ball then he stops. The referee didn’t look at the situation.”
In contrast, Old Trafford chief Erik ten Hag hailed his team’s “resilience and determination” after they went third and eased memories of a 6-3 loss at the Etihad in October.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
