José Mourinho unleashed a scathing critique of the referee and VAR following Real Madrid’s 2‑1 derby defeat to Atlético Madrid at the Metropolitano, insisting that Atlético deserved “two clear red cards” and that the on‑field official “couldn’t cope with the pressure.”
Atlético took the lead in the second half when Alejandro Grimaldo converted a penalty after defender Dean Huijsen was sent off for fouling Giuliano Simeone. Jonathan David doubled the advantage, before Antonio Rüdiger pulled one back late to leave Madrid sitting in fourth place.
Mourinho’s post‑match news conference, however, centred on two first‑half incidents. He argued that Atlético’s Cristian Romero should have been dismissed for trampling on Jude Bellingham’s knee, while Lee Kang‑in escaped any sanction for a brutal challenge on Federico Valverde. To illustrate his points, Mourinho brought printed photographs of the tackles into the press room.
“The story of the game is here,” he said, holding up the images. “They are two clear red cards. With the difficulties we had afterwards – playing 11 versus 10 – you could imagine what it would have been like for us to face 11 versus nine for 50 minutes.”
He continued, “It’s the CTA [the referee’s committee]. It’s all been very strange. This referee, Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias, is 41 and lacks international experience. I don’t know why he was chosen. The poor guy came here and couldn’t cope with the pressure.
“But for the VAR there is no pressure; at RFEF HQ Las Rozas there is no pressure. Or maybe there is and we don’t know. That combination – a poor referee who has only handled small games and a VAR with a big history – congratulations to the CTA.”
Real Madrid later reported that Valverde sustained severe trauma to his left ankle in the challenge by Lee and would undergo further tests to assess the injury’s seriousness.
Mourinho admitted he had not yet reviewed the replay of Huijsen’s dismissal and went on to list a series of controversial moments from recent matches involving Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atlético, suggesting that Madrid’s rivals had repeatedly benefited from favourable decisions.
“The penalty at Real Sociedad [for Atlético] is laughable,” he said. “The penalty for Barcelona is laughable, the non‑sending off [for Barcelona] against Athletic Club. So many things together. … I thought I’d find a different league to the one I left [in 2013], and people told me no, and they explained why. But we’ll fight.”
Madrid now trails league leaders Barcelona by six points after seven games, heading into the upcoming international break.
“If ‘they’ leave us in peace, and let us compete on an even playing field, there’s a long way left,” Mourinho said when asked whether his side could still contest the title.
“I don’t want to say this was prepared. I want to think they made mistakes, like a coach does. I want to think the CTA made a mistake by picking a 41‑year‑old referee with no experience in this situation. They made a mistake, that’s all.”
Atlético manager Diego Simeone declined to dwell on the refereeing controversy, preferring to keep the focus on his squad.
“We are always respectful of others’ opinions,” he said when questioned about Mourinho’s remarks. “We are in a privileged position: Mourinho, [Hansi] Flick, [Manuel] Pellegrini, me. We need to be careful what we say. … When we go outside that respect, it doesn’t matter if you’re Mourinho, Simeone, Pellegrini or Flick, you can’t cross that line.”
