Romelu Lukaku’s first goal in a United shirt wrapped up a 2-1 victory at Rio Tinto Stadium, where Luis Silva gave the Major League Soccer side a deserved lead that was cancelled out by Henrikh Mkhitarya

Mata went off with an ankle complaint sustained in a challenge by RSL substitute Sebastian Saucedo, who was then forced off after a tackle that earned Valencia a red card.

“I think the delay was because the referee asked me to change the player and I didn’t because I don’t agree with the card,” Mourinho said.

“Saucedo, I think is the name of the boy, was really aggressive during all the second half

“What happened to Mata and some other actions was a bit dangerous, which I understand – young people with enthusiasm playing against Manchester United.

“But you come with a mentality of a friendly match and in the end you find yourself in a different mentality.

“But it’s pre-season, no problem. Also a good experience for us to play with one player less.”