Referee, Peter Bankes, took his time to assess the situation before brandishing a straight red card.
Sanchez was giving his marching orders because of the denial of an obvious goalscoring opportunity ruling, which is crucial with regards to the length of his suspension.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca opted to take off Estevao and Pedro Neto in response to the red card, bringing on Filip Jorgensen as the replacement goalkeeper and Tosin Adarabioyo in an attempt to shore up the defence.
Red card: Robert Sanchez
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However, Casemiro was sent-off on the stroke of half-time for two bookable offences to set up an interesting second half.
Trevoh Chalobah’s 79th minute header did give the Blues hope but United held on for all three points in a result that eases the pressure on head coach Ruben Amorim.
As for Chelsea, it’s back to the drawing board after successive defeats this week and for Sanchez to reflect on his rash decision.
How many games will Robert Sanchez miss?
Due to Sanchez being sent-off for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity, he must serve a one-game suspension.
Had he been dismissed for violent conduct, then a minimum three-match ban would have been his punishment.
But in this case, Sanchez will be unavailable for selection in Chelsea’s next fixture which is Lincoln away in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night. This means he will be back for the home game in the Premier League against former club Brighton next weekend.
