Simeone tells Mourinho to respect referees after fiery Madrid derby

Atletico de Madrid manager Diego Simeone responded to Jose Mourinho’s criticism of the officials with a message urging the Real Madrid boss not to let his status affect his respect for referees after Sunday’s 2-1 derby defeat in the seventh round of La Liga.

Mourinho strongly criticised referee Ortiz Arias during his post-match news conference after a controversial match that included the sending-off of Real Madrid defender Dean Huijsen and a penalty awarded to Atletico de Madrid.

Real Madrid players also called for Atletico’s Kang-in Lee and Cristian Romero to be dismissed following two dangerous challenges.

“It should have been 11 against nine for 50 minutes, but instead it became 11 against 10 against us,” Mourinho said.

He also criticised VAR referee Trujillo for not asking Ortiz Arias to review the incident involving Kang-in Lee.

“Mr Trujillo, the VAR referee who did not call the referee to review Kang-in Lee’s red-card incident, has a very strange history with Real Madrid,” Mourinho said. “As for poor Mr Ortiz, it is clear he cannot handle the pressure of matches like this.”

Asked about Mourinho’s comments after the game, Simeone initially gave a brief response: “No comment.”

He then addressed Mourinho directly, saying: “These are simply phases of the game. Sometimes things go in your favour and sometimes they do not. You cannot lose your respect for referees. Everything is allowed, regardless of how famous you are, Mourinho.”

Simeone said managers had a responsibility to consider the impact of their words.

“We respect everyone’s opinions. We are in a privileged position as coaches, so we must be careful about what we say,” he added. “We have to respect other people, the referee and our colleagues. We all lose when someone goes beyond the limits of respect, regardless of their position – Mourinho, Simeone, Flick or Pellegrini. No-one should cross that line.”

Speaking to DAZN, Simeone said Atletico had controlled the first half and that the penalty converted by Giuliano had changed the game.

“We controlled the match well in the first half, when there were no clear goalscoring chances,” he said. “Some attacks change the course of matches, and Giuliano’s penalty was that opportunity.”

Simeone said Atletico took advantage of their numerical superiority before Real Madrid pulled a goal back.

“With an extra player, we exploited the situations in which we could hurt them,” he said, according to Marca. “That is how Jonathan David scored, and then they reduced the deficit with a goal from one of their dangerous attacks.”

On Julian Alvarez, Simeone said the Argentina forward would receive the club’s support after a difficult performance.

“We have excellent people. When you give your best, they appreciate you,” he said. “Julian tried, and it was difficult for him. We will help him get back on the right track.”

Simeone also praised Jonathan David, saying he was “very happy” with the forward because he provided the competitive spirit needed to fight as far as possible.