Ruben Amorim felt sorry for Bruno Fernandes after the Manchester United captain was shown red for the third time this season in the Premier League defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Boxing Day.

Fernandes was sent off in the 47th minute at Molineux after receiving a second yellow card for a late foul on Nelson Semedo. He was booked for a trip against Matheus Cunha in the first half.

The 30-year-old will be suspended for Monday’s Premier League game against Newcastle United. Fellow midfielder Manuel Ugarte will also miss the game against Newcastle after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season in the second half on Thursday evening.

The red card was Fernandes’ third of the season, having been sent off in the Premier League defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in September and the Europa League draw with Porto. His red card against Spurs was later overturned after a successful appeal.

“A red card will always frustrate me, but it can happen,” Amorim said after the game.

“He wanted to get the ball. It’s not that he wants to stop a play with a yellow card – he wants to go to the ball. The other one touched the ball first and contact occurred. This thing is hard for him too.”

Go deeper

The briefing: Wolves 2 Man Utd 0: What did Fernandes do? An Olimpico problem, what’s next for Amorim?

United were beaten 2-0 by Wolves after Cunha scored straight from a corner and Hwang Hee-chan finished in stoppage time.

It was the Portuguese’s fourth defeat in seven league games since he was appointed as Erik ten Hag’s successor in November, but he insists his new team will adapt to his style of play over time.

“I did it, but I didn’t train. You need time to train. They completely change the way they play,” he explained when asked about his first month as coach.

“It’s really hard for them and also for the staff to pass on all the information. If you don’t have results, it’s even harder for them to believe.

“We have to keep going. We already knew it was a difficult moment and we had to concentrate on the next game.”

(Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images)