Man Utd Captain Wayne Rooney admits wrong, says Ref was right for showing him Red

Manchester United captain, Wayne Rooney has apologised to his colleagues and admitted that the Ref was right to have sent him off after the awful challenge on Steward Downing in a game which ended 2-1 in favour of the Reds at the home.

The England forward told reporters that he has apologised to his team mates and appreciated their efforts by ensuring they held on to the lead despite the West Ham onslaught.

"It was probably the right decision," declared Rooney, who also confirmed he will not be appealing the dismissal. "I saw the West Ham player making a counter-attack and I tried to break up the play, but I just misjudged it.

"I didn't absolutely volley the lad. I tried to trip him up and, to be fair to him, he got further away from me and that's why my leg is straighter than it should have been. As he pushed the ball away, my leg straightened out and that is obviously why the referee deemed it as a red card."

On his apologies to the team, he said - "Of course I did. I think everyone knew [I was in the wrong]. It’s always tough against 11 men when you are a man down, especially when they are throwing a lot of balls into the box as West Ham were doing, so I am grateful that we held out."