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REFEREES SWAYED: MICHAEL OWEN ACCUSES BRUNO FERNANDES OF "NAUGHTY" FREE-KICK INFLUENCE

Manchester United's equaliser came from a questionable free-kick after Adam Smith was penalised for handball. Michael Owen suggests Bruno Fernandes' overreaction swayed referee Simon Hooper's poor decision.

Referees Swayed: Michael Owen Accuses Bruno Fernandes of "Naughty" Free-Kick Influence
Did Bruno Fernandes Force Simon Hooper’s Handball Mistake?

After Manchester United got a questionable free kick against Bournemouth, Bruno Fernandes was accused of swaying Simon Hooper's call. On Monday, Fernandes scored a cool free kick to tie the game at 3-3 after Bournemouth's captain, Adam Smith, was called for a handball.

The 4-4 game at Old Trafford was filled with action, but the free-kick call wasn't the main thing people were talking about. Still, it angered Bournemouth. Their manager, Andoni Iraola, said, I think it's a clear mistake. It hit above the armband. It's not a foul.

The ball hit Smith's arm at close range, but Hooper gave a free kick and booked Smith for arguing after Fernandes scored. Michael Owen thinks Hooper only made that decision because Fernandes influenced him.

Owen said about Fernandes' free kick on Premier League Productions, The speed, the curve, everything was great—but it shouldn't have been a free kick. The ball was a foot away from him. Even if it hits him low, it's harsh when you kick it into someone from a yard away. His arms weren't waving around, and it was too high anyway. It was a bad call.

Little things matter a lot. People don't want to see players faking falls or claiming free kicks when they shouldn't. If Bruno Fernandes doesn't overreact when the ball hits, he doesn't get the call. The ref thinks, 'I didn't see it right; I'll give it,' because of the player's reaction. It's human.

These small things make a big difference. If Bruno doesn't act like that, if he's not pushing the limits and being a bit sneaky, they don't get that free kick or score that goal. It's like he was streetwise in winning that free kick.

Smith was mad about the call. He said, We let in a bad goal right before halftime, which made us angry, and it showed. We came out for the second half and scored twice right away.

Then, no surprise, the ref makes a bad call because the ball hit my shoulder from a yard away. What am I supposed to do with my arms? I don't know. He didn't even want to talk to me, which is worse. Even the Man United players said it wasn't a handball!

As a defender, I don't know what to do anymore. It's a yard away, or even right next to me! It hit the top of my sleeve. I thought that wasn't handball anymore?

He wouldn't even talk to me. He said, 'I don't want to talk to you right now.' Then he booked me after the goal. It's really annoying.

EX-CAPTAIN NEVILLE CLAIMS SUBSTITUTIONS MADE MANCHESTER UNITED "WORSE" AGAINST WOLVES

Gary Neville slams Ruben Amorim’s "weird" substitutions and tactical shifts after Manchester United's 1-1 draw with bottom-side Wolves.

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Was the halftime substitution a tactical error or an injury?

Gary Neville said that the performance of Manchester United in their match against winless Wolves was ‘the baddest of the bad.’

United would have moved fourth in the league with a win at Old Trafford last night, although Wolves, who had two points in 18 games before kickoff, ended their record of 11 straight losses with a 1-1 draw.

Amorim’s team had been knocked out of the Carabao Cup by a League Two team, Grimsby, in August, but Neville was convinced that United had hit rock bottom in a game that could have been even more one-sided were it not for two important saves by Senne Lammens.

“That was the baddest of the bad," the former United captain declared on the Gary Neville podcast.

“They weren’t just booed off at the final whistle. The fans waited in the stadium to continue to boo them. They’ve gone backwards.”

United had won at Newcastle 1-0 on Boxing Day, despite being plagued by an injury list that already lacked skipper Bruno Fernandes, Harry Maguire, and Matthijs de Ligt, as well as three players on African Cup of Nations duty.

But they remained flat right from the first whistle, and the header by Ladislav Krejci just before the half bottled Joshua Zirkzee's deflected shot.

Amorim’s formation choice of 3-4-3 was brought into focus once more as the Portuguese opted to go back to his preferred tactic of four at the back against Newcastle.

“This isn’t right. I’ve watched enough of United over the last five or six weeks to know what looks right and what isn’t right,” Neville had declared 20 minutes into his commentary on Sky Sports.

“Because, when I see that we go back (to three at the back) after five minutes tonight, I’m thinking, no, Ruben, why have you done that?

"The manager has to look at that and think, I got that wrong. I complicated it."

However, Amorim decided to substitute Zirkzee at halftime and brought on an 18-year-old Jack Fletcher, who made his third appearance at the senior level.

Regarding substitutions made by Amorim, Neville further added, “They made Manchester United worse. Every single substitution was ridiculous.”

‘If Zirkzee was injured, and it was a tactical substitution, that was a very poor one.’ But Zirkzee isn't Eric Cantona, not by a long shot, and he had to get out there for physicality, for presence, for experience.”

SEE LISANDRO MARTINEZ’S FURIOUS REACTION AFTER MAN UTD’S SHOCK WOLVES DRAW

Lisandro Martinez demands more after Man Utd’s 1-1 draw with bottom-placed Wolves. United ended 2025 sixth in the Premier League.

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Martinez slams United’s tactical mistakes

Stand-in captain Lisandro Martinez was mad that Manchester United dropped points against Wolves, who are at the bottom of the league.

United came into the last game of 2025 after a good win against Newcastle on Boxing Day and were expected to easily beat Wolves.

Joshua Zirkzee scored first for United, but they didn't take their chances. Ladislav Krejci's header tied the game for Wolves, 1-1.

It was only their third point in 19 games, and it stopped their 11-game losing streak. United fans booed at the end of the game.

When Martinez was asked if it felt like a disappointing point, he said, 100 percent.

We are very disappointed. We can't keep drawing or losing points at home. We have to win.

We want to be at the top, competing with the best.

We can't drop points in games like this. We just have to accept it and be hungry for the next game.

Martinez was captain again because Bruno Fernandes is still recovering from an injury.

When United coach Ruben Amorim was asked about injured players for the game against Leeds on Sunday, he didn't give much away. Leeds are really wanting to beat United for the first time since 2010.

Martinez said to MUTV, You can either make excuses, or you can be strong and say, 'We're dropping points, so we need to go for the next one and show what we can do.'

We need to work together and do the easy things to get the three points.

United is in sixth place in the league at the end of 2025, only two points behind Liverpool for the last Champions League spot. Liverpool has a game in hand.

They could be in a better position if they had been better in both boxes. Leeds has been playing well lately, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin doing great up front.

Martinez added, It's about us. I don't like to think about other teams.

I'm thinking about what we can do to get better as a team every day, and we have to learn from this game.

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