Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho accuses Sergio Aguero of getting Marouane Fellaini sent off: 'If he doesn't go to the floor, it's not a red'

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Jose Mourinho accused Sergio Aguero of getting Marouane Fellaini sent off as a goalless Manchester derby erupted at the Etihad on Thursday night.

Fellaini was shown a straight red card by referee Martin Atkinson for headbutting Aguero just 19 seconds after he was booked for fouling the City striker.

But Mourinho claimed that Aguero made a meal of the incident as he clashed with the big Belgian midfielder in the 84th minute.

Marouane Fellaini saw red after a rush of blood to the head against Sergio Aguero in the draw

Jose Mourinho accused Sergio Aguero of getting the Belgium international sent off

'If Sergio doesn't go to the floor for sure it's not a red card,' said Mourinho. 'I saw Aguero in the tunnel but no broken nose, no broken head, his face is nice as always, so I'm not so sure.

'I didn't watch but probably I can guess it is a bit of a red card and a bit of a very experienced, smart Argentinian player.

'Marouane Fellaini is frustrated. He says that with another player it would probably not be a red card. He says that Sergio Aguero was intelligent the way he reacted.

'Martin Atkinson told me that in his opinion it's a red card. The only thing I know is that we had to play almost 15 minutes with a tired team. The boys were absolutely amazing in the way they fought for the points.' 

 The skirmish took place right in front of referee Martin Atkinson who had no doubt it was red

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola refused to comment on Fellaini's sending off

Speaking on Sky TV, former United defender Gary Neville echoed Mourinho's comments, saying: 'Aguero's played him there like a fool. What is he (Fellaini) doing?'

City boss Pep Guardiola did not want to be drawn on the issue but compared it with Nolito's sending-off for a similar offence against Bournemouth in September.

'I'm not going to talk about what happened in the last minutes, it didn't change the game' said Guardiola.

'When Nolito was sent off against Bournemouth and banned for three games, in that situation you don't talk to me. Speak with the referees.

'I don't like to see guys sent off and would prefer to see Fellaini stay on the pitch, but I'm not going to analyse it.' 

Aguero looks at the extent of Fellaini's impact on his forehead during the main flashpoint

Mourinho appears to protest the dismissal with fourth official Neil Swarbrick on Thursday

City captain Vincent Kompany produced an assured performance but he was left frustrated

City dominated the game without breaking down a United side who had their lowest possession since Opta stats began.

Captain Vincent Kompany said: 'I can't remember a season in which we have dominated the big teams so much and got so little out of it. The game didn't feel that difficult.'

City are still favourites to clinch a top-four finish as they have a one-point advantage over United and an easier run-in.

Mourinho is now targeting Liverpool with United able to move above their old rivals if they win their game in hand at home to Swansea on Sunday.

He added: 'The focus was on the distance between us and Man City but we went a bit deeper and we focused on the distance between us and Liverpool,' said Mourinho. 

Aguero puts his hands on his head in reaction to his missed chance, which clipped the post

United defended manfully throughout and Eric Bailly was a rock at the heart of the defence

Jesus wheels away in celebration just minutes after coming on but his goal was chalked off

'We tried to win it in the first half but we knew that if the game went in a different direction it would be a good point.

'We have played 18 more matches played than Liverpool. That's half a Premier League (season). Eighteen matches are many miles in the players' legs, so if you can say that it's an unfair fight but we are going for that.

'I think Man City is going to finish top four, the matches they have to play I see them doing that. I think it's between us, Arsenal and Liverpool.'

Guardiola believes that goalkeeper Claudio Bravo will miss 'a few games' after he was carried off with a calf injury, while Timothy Fosu-Mensah has joined United's casualty list after suffering a suspected shoulder injury that Mourinho described as 'significant'.

Manchester City keeper Claudio Bravo was substituted off in the 79th minute on Thursday

Manchester City's players crowd round Bravo after he went down with the injury at the Etihad

Timothy Fosu-Mensah suffered an injury after coming on in the final 10 minutes at the Etihad