Ferdinand pokes fun at Luiz after Villa star's celebration in Man Utd defeat

12 February 2024 , 06:25

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Douglas Luiz's celebration caused some debate (Image: PA)

Rio Ferdinand has poked fun at Douglas Luiz after Manchester United's 2-1 win at Aston Villa.

Scott McTominay scored a 86th minute winner for Erik ten Hag's side after Luiz had cancelled out Rasmus Hojlund's opener. The travelling United faithful were jubilant after the final whistle as they acknowledged the significance of the victory in the race for the Champions League places.

However, United could have been even more motivated to topple Villa following Luiz's provocative celebration. After firing beyond Andre Onana, Luiz decided to roar in front of the Cameroonian, before executing a shoulder shimmy. Luiz then teared off towards the Holte end, but was pulled back by John McGinn as Villa looked to win the game.

And Ferdinand decided to take aim at Luiz after the final whistle as United closed the gap on the top four to six points. The ex-United centre-back posted an image of Luiz performing a knee slide after scoring and tagged the midfielder on X. He wrote: "You ok @dgoficial?" It was followed by four laughing emojis.

Meanwhile, Erik ten Hag was quizzed on Luiz's celebration in his post-match press conference and admitted it may have motivated his players to win the match. He said: "I don’t have an opinion on it.

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"I haven’t spoken to the players. It may have fuelised (fuelled) the players. I don’t know. We have to think about our game. Not about the opposition. We always want to control the game and dictate it. That should be our approach."

Douglas Luiz's celebration vs Man United ruffled feathers (Getty Images)

His celebration wasn't Luiz's only talking point from the game as the Brazilian was involved in an altercation with Hojlund as the Denmark international left the pitch in the final couple of minutes. The United ace was in no rush to leave the pitch after being substituted and that incensed Luiz, who went over to grab his opponent and usher him off.

The win is United's third on the bounce in the Premier League as they look to mount a serious challenge in their hopes for Champions League qualification. "It was massive," Ten Hag said on the meaning of the Red Devils' win. "It's a massive win for us. So, we get closer. And that was the aim for today and was absolutely our target.

"We did it. And I think also the way we did it, I think I liked it, and of course, I liked especially the first 20 minutes. And when we are dictating the game, after I think we are dropping a little bit too much. We had our moments in the counter attacks, but yeah, I think then at 1-1, to fight back, we are really happy for today."

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Kieran King