Fresh footage has emerged appearing to show Bruno Fernandes accidentally catching Phil Foden with an elbow moments before the Manchester City midfielder was controversially dismissed in the Manchester derby.
City still secured a 1-0 victory at Old Trafford despite being reduced to 10 men, with Manchester United failing to create a serious attacking threat until the final stages of the contest.
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Erling Haaland grabbed the decisive goal, although there was controversy surrounding the offside decision that allowed the strike to stand.
Foden’s red card was also heavily debated, with questions raised over whether Fernandes’ challenge moments earlier should have received greater punishment.
Foden was dismissed for violent conduct after appearing to kick out at Fernandes while he was lying on the ground.
watching from this angle.
Bruno elbows Foden from behind & starts kicking him.
not even a yellow card 🤔🤔 pic.twitter.com/tbnoNxaMhh
— foland (fan) (@propsMCFC) September 14, 2026
Referee Michael Oliver told the VAR officials that he had awarded a red card for a ‘kick out into the body of Bruno’, while VAR official Shaun Donohue said he believed there had been a ‘secondary movement’ from Foden.
Fernandes was not shown a red card despite kicking Foden in the lower back, an incident that is likely to have contributed to the City midfielder’s furious response.
However, another angle of the incident has now surfaced on social media and appears to reveal what sparked the confrontation between the two players.
As Foden attempted to protect the ball from Fernandes, the United midfielder extended his arm across him and seemingly caught the City player in the back with his elbow, sending him to the ground.
It remains uncertain whether Oliver would have considered the contact sufficient to award a free-kick or issue Fernandes with a yellow card, but the footage appears to provide additional context for Foden’s subsequent reaction.
Foden is now set to serve a three-match suspension, the standard punishment for a violent conduct offence. If the dismissal had instead been for another type of offence resulting in a straight red card, his suspension would have been limited to one match.
Domestic cup fixtures are included when suspensions are served, meaning one of Foden’s missed games will be City’s Carabao Cup third-round home clash with Norwich City on Thursday, although he may not have featured in that match anyway.
The three-game suspension also means Foden could go an entire month without playing, unless he receives an unexpected call-up to Thomas Tuchel’s England squad. City face Sunderland in the Premier League on Sunday before the international break.
City’s following match comes away at Liverpool on October 11, meaning Foden is expected to make his comeback in their home Champions League meeting with defending champions Paris Saint-Germain on October 14.
After City’s 1-0 victory, Foden posted on social media: “Unbelievable performance from the lads. Gutted I didn’t get to play my part properly. Proud to be Blue.”
