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The head coach Sir Alex Ferguson criticized forward Wayne Rooney during a press conference on Wednesday for receiving a red card in the first UEFA Champions League group stage match against Villarreal, which ended in a goalless draw.
The English national team forward received two yellow cards in one episode with 26 minutes left in the game, as he sarcastically clapped at the Danish referee Kim Milton Nielsen after the first one.
"I think Wayne reacted wrongly," the coach tried to speak subtly. "He felt that the yellow card was unjust, but you can't clap at the referee. At first, it seemed to me that he just placed his hand on his arm, but he actually clapped at the referee. He left himself no chance - just not with this referee."
"He is a young lad, 19 years old, so we hope that with age he will not make such mistakes anymore," continued Ferguson. "We will encourage his good qualities to eliminate the bad ones."
Ferguson admitted that Rooney's dismissal greatly harmed the team, as at that moment Manchester United had started to take the lead in the match against the UEFA Champions League debutants Villarreal.
"Man Utd" praised the team's defenders for helping the team withstand playing with 10 against 11 and added that "Man Utd" were worth "about a point" in the match.
In addition, having lost their captain Roy Keane a few weeks ago, now "Man Utd" seemed to have lost left-back Gabriel Heinze, who suffered a knee ligament injury in Wednesday's match. More detailed exams to determine the severity of the injury will be conducted in the near future.
"Villarreal" coach Manuel Pellegrini said after the match that he was partly satisfied with the team's debut, but regretted that they could not win three points at home. It is worth mentioning that the Argentine playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme did not play for the "Yellow Submarine" yesterday.
"I can't say I'm completely satisfied, but I am calm because the 'Man Utd' defense seemed unbreakable," said Pellegrini. "The team played well, but losing points at home is not good."
