Real Madrid condemn ‘catastrophic’ refereeing after Atletico Madrid derby defeat

Real Madrid have launched a strong criticism of the officiating following their 2-1 defeat by Atletico Madrid, claiming referee Miguel Angel Ortiz Arias determined the outcome of Saturday’s derby at the Metropolitano.

The club published a match report on its official website under the headline: “A catastrophic refereeing performance decided the fate of the derby.” Real Madrid said several key decisions had gone against them during the match and questioned Ortiz Arias’ handling of incidents reviewed by VAR.

The first major controversy came in the opening half when Cristian Romero made a forceful challenge on Jude Bellingham’s knee. Ortiz Arias went to the pitchside monitor after being advised to review the incident, but ultimately showed the Atletico Madrid defender only a yellow card.

Real Madrid also argued that Kang-in Lee should have been sent off for a foul on Federico Valverde. The club included that incident among the decisions it believed had a significant influence on the result.

The second half brought another contentious moment involving Dean Huijsen and Giuliano Simeone. Huijsen was initially booked and Atletico Madrid were awarded a penalty after the challenge.

Following another VAR intervention, Ortiz Arias reviewed the incident on the monitor once more and changed Huijsen’s yellow card to a red. Alejandro Grimaldo then converted the resulting penalty to put Atletico Madrid ahead.

Jose Mourinho echoed his club’s complaints during his post-match news conference, describing the events as unusual and directing particular criticism at Ortiz Arias’ appointment.

“Everything was very strange,” Mourinho said.

The Portuguese manager questioned why Ortiz Arias had been selected to referee the derby, arguing that his status did not place him among the game’s leading officials.

“He is not an international referee, which suggests that he does not really belong to the elite. This poor man came here and was unable to handle the pressure,” Mourinho added.

Real Madrid’s official account of the match focused on the decisions involving Bellingham, Valverde and Huijsen, while Mourinho’s comments extended the club’s criticism beyond the individual calls to the choice of referee for the fixture.