Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata has claimed that he takes "responsibility" for getting sent off during Sunday's defeat to West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns.
The Spaniard was issued with a red card for the first time in his career after getting booked twice by referee Mike Dean in the space of three minutes in the first half.
Salomon Rondon scored the only goal of the game as United's winning streak came to an end following four straight victories in all competitions.
In his weekly blog, Mata wrote: "After almost 500 games as a professional player, this Sunday I was sent off for the first time in my career. As you can imagine, it's not easy for me to write these lines. The truth is this is a new and strange situation for me, not easy to assimilate, but we learn from everything.
"I know that in football we see things like these every week, but obviously what hurts more is that my teammates had to fight with 10 men for a long time. I have the feeling that both decisions were rigorous - that, in many occasions, we see more serious fouls that are not penalised in such a way, but at the same time I could have avoided them and I take responsibility.
"It also leaves me with a bad taste for the supporters who travelled to the stadium, and for those who were watching the game from home, but I must carry on as always and from now on I'm already focused on the next game - the derby against Liverpool in the Europa League."
United are sixth in the Premier League table, three points behind fourth-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand.
Danielle Joynson
