Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho arrived at his post-match news conference carrying an A4 sheet of printed paper with screenshots displaying two incidents he believed should have resulted in Atletico Madrid dismissals.
Mourinho accused the officials of making key errors after Real Madrid were beaten 2-1 by Atletico Madrid, claiming the hosts should have been handed two red cards in the first half.
It was Real Madrid’s second defeat of the season, having lost 1-0 to Real Betis earlier in September.
“We can skip the press conference because the story of the match is right here,” Mourinho said as he showed media the printed images.
“Those were two clear red cards. Given the difficulties we faced afterwards playing 11 against 10, we can only imagine what 50 minutes of 11 against nine would have been like.
“So I’ll just have to limit myself to hugging my players, who gave it their all and played a first half, showed great class and character, setting us up perfectly to win the second half.”
Diego Simeone, in contrast, was ecstatic with the result and when asked to respond to Mourinho’s refereeing rant, said he was always respectful of everyone else’s opinions.
“I understand that we’re in a privileged position with a lot of public scrutiny, as coaches, and whether it’s Mourinho, [Hansi] Flick, [Manuel] Pellegrini, me, or anyone else, we need to be careful about what we say,” he said.
“We have to know how to respect others, the referees, our colleagues and we all lose out. And when someone crosses that line of respect, it’s not right – you can’t cross that line.”
I want to believe they are simply mistakes – Mourinho
Mourinho argued the two first-half decisions had a significant impact on the match, insisting his team had shown character despite the circumstances.
The first incident Mourinho referenced involved Real’s Jude Bellingham and Atleti’s Cristian Romero in the 37th minute, when both players challenged for a loose ball and the clash ended with Bellingham being shown a yellow card.
At the time, Mourinho pleaded with the referee for a red card to be shown to the Argentina international for dangerous foul play, because replays showed Romero made contact with his studs on Bellingham’s knee. Bellingham’s yellow card was retracted after a video assistant referee review and Romero was given a yellow.
The second was for a challenge by Atletico’s Lee Kang-in on Fede Valverde, which Mourinho believed should have been a straight red card.
The Portuguese also questioned the appointment of the match officials, saying he wanted to believe the decisions were mistakes rather than deliberate.
“I want to believe they are simply mistakes, just as a coach makes mistakes, just as a player makes mistakes,” he said.
Despite the defeat, Mourinho said he had no complaints about his players’ commitment and praised their performance, particularly in the first half.
“I liked my team as a unit. Even in the first half I really liked them, and in the second half it was obviously very difficult to get the ball and to stop Atleti’s possession. I liked their pride, I liked their determination, and it’s a good feeling for me to not be disappointed in my players”.
Mourinho also addressed the dismissal of Dean Huijsen, which resulted in a penalty for Atletico, admitting he had not yet watched the VAR replay.
The defeat leaves Real Madrid fourth in the league standings, with Atletico second – five points behind league leaders Barcelona.
Yet Mourinho was keen to stress that there was still a long way to go in the season.
“Under normal circumstances, it’s not about how it starts, it’s about how it ends,” he said.
Atletico controlled the match – Simeone
Atletico manager Simeone rejected the suggestion the result would be overshadowed by the refereeing debate, saying his team had controlled the contest.
“The match I watched was an intense one, where I think we controlled it at all times,” the Argentine said.
“We faced an opponent with incredible transitions and extraordinary players who obviously play for their team and do so very well. We controlled almost all the transitions they could have had.”
Simeone described the derby as an intense match and praised his players’ defensive organisation and collective effort against a Real Madrid side featuring several dangerous attacking players.
“I think we controlled the match at all times, through our teamwork, our defence, our collective effort, our group dynamics, and our play. Looking for where we could hurt them, which we knew was on the right side.”
La Liga will resume on Friday 9 October following the international break.
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
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