Gary Neville accused Oriol Romeu of "trying to do" Mason Greenwood during Manchester United's 2-2 draw with Southampton on Monday night.
The Southampton midfielder was booked in the 43rd minute for a nasty challenge on the 18-year-old.
The Spaniard caught Greenwood high up past his ankle, well after the ball had gone.
VAR took a look at the incident, but decided not to take any further action against the ex-Chelsea man.
And ex-United defender Neville, working for Sky Sports, was far from impressed with both Romeu , or VAR.
He insisted: "I do not like that. I think that’s a bad one.
"The ball’s gone, he’s tried to do him.
"I think he’s lucky there, Romeu. The ball’s gone, they can be leg breakers those ones."
United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was similarly unhappy post-game, when asked his impression of the incident.
The Norwegian said: "I know my ankle would not like that tackle.
"I would have been out for a month with that tackle."
Former Southampton star Matt Le Tissier, also working for Sky on Monday night, offered a different take however, backing both Romeu and VAR.
“I disagree [with Neville],” Le Tissier said. “I don’t think it was a red, it always looks bad in slow motion.
“Romeu is actually slowing down as he gets to him, the force he goes into him is probably the thing that saves him because it does look bad on the slow motion.
"I’m not sure this is a deliberate attempt and I don’t think the force is enough to warrant a red card.
"I think it was accidental had there been more force to it you would have said it would be similar to other red cards this season."
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