{"id":553846,"date":"2026-03-21T00:12:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T00:12:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/553846\/"},"modified":"2026-03-21T00:12:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T00:12:07","slug":"maguire-red-card-costs-manchester-united-as-kroupi-rescues-bournemouth-draw-premier-league","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/553846\/","title":{"rendered":"Maguire red card costs Manchester United as Kroupi rescues Bournemouth draw | Premier League"},"content":{"rendered":"

Under Friday night lights, Manchester United<\/a> stumbled. A day to remember for Harry Maguire became a night of regret when he was shown a red card during a madcap second-half flurry of own goals, gaffes and disputed penalties. Twice United had the lead against Bournemouth, twice they were soon pegged back. Eli Junior Kroupi\u2019s penalty snatched yet another draw for Andoni Iraola\u2019s Premier League specialists, the fifth in succession, their 15th this season; the record is 18.<\/p>\n

That made it six games in succession United have failed to beat Bournemouth<\/a>, a side they continue to struggle with. Michael Carrick\u2019s regime have changed plenty for the better over 10 games but here came a disorderly echo of a troubled recent past, a stall in the Champions League chase.<\/p>\n

The 4-4 draw played out<\/a> at Old Trafford in December was a key juncture in Ruben Amorim\u2019s downward spiral, game, team and club spinning from his control. Steve Holland, Carrick\u2019s assistant, track suit rather than sharp suit, shuns the limelight but has been influential, as he was when alongside Gareth Southgate. The pair could not find the key to Iraola\u2019s team, fizzing with energy, unbeaten in the league since 3 January. \u201cReally energetic and positive and constantly test you,\u201d was Carrick\u2019s post-match description.<\/p>\n

Carrick, implacable on the sidelines amid bedlam, maintained calm in the afterglow. \u201cWe\u2019re in a good place. We\u2019ve put ourselves in this position through some good work, good results and good performances. We could have had more tonight but it\u2019s not the end of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo had earlier been recalled by England and both are in line for new contracts when they were previously heading for the exit. Mainoo lined up against Alex Scott, omitted from Thomas Tuchel\u2019s bloated squad<\/a>, despite his outstanding season. England have a wealth of options in the No 6 position but Scott retained the stronger influence within a frantic midfield scrap. \u201cIt\u2019s fuel,\u201d said Scott, disappointed yet determined. Iraola said: \u201cMaybe he has a chance at the end of the season because he\u2019s doing everything from his side to be considered.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eli Junior Kroupi puts his arms up in delight after his equaliser. Photograph: Catherine Ivill\/AMA\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Talk of Iraola, a systems manager though not in the mould of Amorim, being linked to United has dimmed. He afterwards sidestepped talk of a return to Athletic Bilbao, though referred to the club he served as a player as \u201cmy club\u201d. Iraola versus the Carrick-Holland axis made for an entertaining clash of styles that began as it ended, a full-bore contest. \u201cWe wanted three points and we played well enough but they looked dangerous every time they came forward,\u201d said Iraola.<\/p>\n

Initially, Bournemouth acceded to United dominating possession. Matheus Cunha was especially full of invention, giving \u00c1lex Jim\u00e9nez a torrid time, even if the full-back played full part in his team\u2019s revival. United\u2019s transfer successes have been rare in the club\u2019s decade-plus of doldrums but Cunha is flourishing rather than shrivelling. That he closed out the half chasing down Rayan, this week joining Cunha in Brazil\u2019s squad, showed worthy commitment to less glamorous disciplines.<\/p>\n

The second half resumed at similar breakneck pace. Iraola\u2019s team have real capability to disrupt opposition, and United\u2019s discomfort grew. Casemiro, booked in the first half, struggled with staying on his best behaviour.<\/p>\n

Then came a quick exchange of goals. United\u2019s lead came against the run of play, and if Cunha\u2019s fall was exaggerated, Jim\u00e9nez did have full grasp of his shirt. Bruno Fernandes, who has missed twice this season, went back to his old penalty routine by delaying, feinting to send Djordje Petrovic the wrong way from the spot.<\/p>\n

Bruno Fernandes gives Manchester United the lead from the penalty spot. Photograph: James Marsh\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

The United away contingent, previously quietened, returned to previous brash Manc swagger mode before outrage descended. Another penalty call looked plumb when Amad Diallo was baulked by Adrien Truffert but within seconds Bournemouth were level, Ryan Christie\u2019s low shot rolling beyond an unsighted Senne Lammens. United\u2019s hopes of video assistance rescue were dashed after a tense wait and the protestations continued post-match. \u201cWhen it\u2019s the bigger players they end up giving the fouls,\u201d said Fernandes, suggesting Diallo\u2019s size had counted against him. \u201cThat could\u2019ve changed the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

When James Hill, Maguire looming, inadvertently headed in Fernandes\u2019 corner, United retook the lead. Scott, increasingly to the fore, might have grabbed Bournemouth\u2019s second equaliser sooner, his shot beating Lammens, hitting the post and back off the Belgian. Bournemouth would not wait much longer. Maguire was dismissed for his last-man grapple of Evanilson for a denial of a goalscoring opportunity. \u201cOnce it\u2019s done, it\u2019s done,\u201d said Carrick, though making clear his view of United being denied a second penalty. \u201cThere are enough people to standardise the decisions. If one isn\u2019t a penalty, the other isn\u2019t a penalty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once Kroupi converted, United were required to dig in, enduring 10 minutes of added-time discomfort from the opponents they find so difficult to shake off.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Under Friday night lights, Manchester United stumbled. A day to remember for Harry Maguire became a night of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":553847,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[563],"tags":[64,63,596,85],"class_list":["post-553846","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-football","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-football","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/553846","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=553846"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/553846\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/553847"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=553846"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=553846"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=553846"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}