Manchester City survived the dismissal of Phil Foden to beat Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford, but the winning goal is now under review. Premier League referees' body Pro Ref has admitted the decision to award Erling Haaland's goal was an "error of judgement."

A Controversial Winner

City went down to 10 men in the 23rd minute when Foden was sent off with a direct red card for kicking Bruno Fernandes. United pushed hard for the breakthrough, with Marcus Rashford struck the post and Kobbie Mainoo headed against the bar, but it was City who found the net. Haaland converted Josko Gvardiol's cross in the 60th minute. The assistant referee's flag went up immediately for offside.

VAR overturned the call, ruling that City midfielder Enzo Fernandez, despite being offside, had not played the ball and so could not be penalised. Pro Ref has since admitted that was the wrong call, stating that Fernandez's position likely affected United defender Lisandro Martínez and should have triggered an on-field review. United manager Michael Carrick called the decision "worrying," while Martínez described it as "an injustice." The result stands, though Pro Ref says a full review of the incident will follow.

City Pull Clear Again

The win keeps City unbeaten through the opening weeks of the post-Pep Guardiola era, now under new manager Enzo Maresca. It marked City's fifth win in five matches across all competitions, including a midweek Champions League victory over Porto. Maresca has been backed with a record-breaking £456m summer outlay, headlined by the arrivals of Fernandez, Iliman Ndiaye, Elliot Anderson, and Ayyoub Bouaddi.

United had hoped Guardiola's departure after a decade of dominance would finally hand them a route back to the top of Manchester football. Instead, the gap has only grown. United sit eight points behind City just four games into the season, extending a run in which they have never finished above their neighbours since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement. For all the optimism around Carrick's rebuild, Sunday's derby was a reminder of how far United still have to travel, VAR error or not.