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Idrissa Gueye received a round of applause from his fellow squad members after delivering an explanation for his extraordinary red card during Monday's triumph at Old Trafford.

Unprecedented Situation in English Football

The midfielder became the first Premier League player to be dismissed for hitting a fellow player in nearly two decades when he slapped his defensive colleague during the fixture. The Toffees' performance was heroic as they played with 10 men for the majority of the game, including stoppage time, to achieve David Moyes' initial victory at Old Trafford as a visiting manager in multiple tries.

'My first apology goes to Michael Keane,' Gueye stated on social media. 'I take full responsibility for my reaction.'

Dressing Room Reaction

Gueye was unable to secure an opportunity to speak with Moyes or his teammates at the interval. Afterwards, with the visitors' locker room celebrating after the 1-0 win, the 36-year-old requested to speak to the whole team and Keane specifically.

• Gueye apologized to the defender for striking him across the head
• The heated early altercation occurred after a poor distribution in his own defensive third
• Additionally he apologized to the team for putting them with a difficult challenge
• His apology were positively accepted by the players

Possible Ramifications

Gueye may yet be disciplined by the club despite Moyes' statement that he appreciates his team members competing with each other. The Scot has a regular disciplinary procedure for red and yellow cards, including financial penalties, which is likely to be applied in Gueye's case.

Ban and International Duty

The Merseyside club could be without their influential midfielder until the new year. Gueye will serve a three-game suspension against Newcastle, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest but might be selected for AFCON duty by his national team before he becomes eligible to play against Chelsea on 13 December.

'Emotions can run high,' he added. 'But nothing justifies such behaviour.'

Opposition Reaction

At the same time, Mathijs de Ligt claimed his team of lacking urgency in Monday's defeat, which halted their winning streak at five games.

• 'The Premier League is not for the weak,' stated the Dutch defender
• 'We lacked that urgency to score goals,'
• 'When facing sides like Everton,' who drop back it's difficult

United head to Crystal Palace for Sunday's lunchtime start. 'The next game is really important now,' said De Ligt. 'We must recover strongly from this display.'