New York City FC star David Villa says he was "frustrated" after being removed in the 68th minute of his side's 2-1 loss to the New York Red Bulls on Sunday night, though both he and manager Jason Kreis said they will move on from the incident.

Villa started for the first time since returning from a hamstring injury that had kept him out for three weeks. But with another five months left in the season, Kreis removed his captain as a precaution.

That didn't sit well with Villa, who gave his coach a surprised look as he was pulled with the Red Bulls ahead 2-0 but down to 10 men after Matt Miazga's second yellow card.

"At that particular moment I wanted to keep playing, but I think Jason obviously wanted to be cautious after a couple of weeks out," Villa said in Spanish, according to MLSsoccer.com. "I mean obviously, I don't like not being on the field. I want to be with the team.

"So yeah, I was frustrated when I was walking off the pitch, but Jason pulled me aside [afterwards] and explained his reasoning to me, and I think obviously he did it for the good of the team."

David Villa was not happy at being removed in the 68th minute of Sunday's game. Noah K. Murray/USA TODAY Sports

Before the substitution, Kreis had encouraged Villa to show greater urgency, but the former Barcelona player merely responded by rolling his eyes.

However, Kreis said after the game that there would be no lingering resentment with Villa.

"I think he was a bit confused as to why he was coming out," Kreis said. "He's such a born, natural competitor that he wants to stay on for the full 90 and probably if it was up to him he'd go ahead and get injured to help us get a point. I spoke to him briefly [after the match] and there are no issues.

"At the end of the day, we have to make decisions that are a little bit more future-thinking than just about getting a result tonight. So at 70 minutes, I made the decision -- let's protect him for the next one and keep him healthy."

Villa said he accepted his manager's decision to substitute him.

"It doesn't matter whether I could've gone 90 minutes," Villa said. "Obviously Jason is my boss and he doesn't even need to explain anything to me, though he did. He was obviously just looking after me.

"I was fit enough to play the 90 minutes but you have to take into account my hamstring injury, also my abductor injury. Again, [Kreis] was just being cautious."

With Sunday's defeat, NYCFC's winless streak stretched to eight games, and Villa is eager to turn around the team's fortunes.

"We have to continue to work hard," Villa said. "We've hit rock bottom and we need to work harder and look forward to the next game."