Louis van Gaal concedes that Wayne Rooney's red-card tackle was 'too unfriendly'

What was Wayne Rooney thinking?

Saturday's fixture between Manchester United and West Ham saw Wayne Rooney receive a straight red card in the 60th minute for kicking out at Stewart Downing, forcing his side to hold on for a 2-1 win with 10 men.

It's hard to argue that the reckless challenge didn't involve malicious intent, and after the match, even Louis van Gaal admitted that Rooney's red-card tackle was "too unfriendly" for his liking.

"I can see why he made the tackle but I think you have to be far friendlier," Van Gaal said. "He did it too unfriendly and that is maybe his biggest mistake. In professional football, you make professional fouls. I've seen it happen five or six times today and, professionally, I can understand that. 

"But I also saw fouls from West Ham that weren't punished the same way, so that is a little strange. I have seen other professional fouls without yellow or red cards."

Rooney is now suspended for United's next three Premier League fixtures, meaning he won't play against Everton, West Brom, and Chelsea.