Catalan club have filed a complaint to Spanish football’s authorities about alleged inconsistencies and errors in matches
Barcelona lost against Girona on Monday night and it was difficult to stomach for anyone – from Hansi Flick to the players and to Culers watching from the stadium or at home.
Not only did La Blaugrana lose to a side who before the game were 12th in the league and two points from the relegation zone, conceding top spot in the table to Real Madrid in the process, they also lost having gone ahead in the second half.
Pau Cubarsi scored a delightful header but then Girona struck back two minutes later through Thomas Lemar, before Fran Beltran snatched the winner with only a few minutes left in normal time.
But the players, and possibly Flick himself, are fuming over what they consider to be bias against them from the referees. Raphinha posted on Instagram on Tuesday saying: “We have a lot to improve on, but not just us. It’s very complicated when the rules are different whether it’s for you or against you, but if we have to play against everyone to win, it’s OK… We’re going to do it.”
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The interesting thing is that it has been a common theme this season for clubs to claim there is bias against them. Real Madrid do it repeatedly. But it’s not just in Spain either. In England, Manchester City midfielder Rodri claimed officials were biased against them and people “don’t want us to win”. He was recently charged by the Football Association for acting in an “improper manner”.
There have certainly been a good number of refereeing errors across Europe this season, but it would be a strange scenario where officials were biased against everyone.
Barcelona have reacted by filing a complaint to the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and Spain’s technical committee of referees (CTA) about alleged inconsistencies and errors in matches.
It’s worth noting they have a strong argument for doing so. In the Catalans’ Copa del Rey semi-final game against Atletico Madrid last week, it took VAR more than seven minutes to decide whether Robert Lewandowski’s heel had been offside before Pau Cubarsi scored, and even then the decision to remove the goal was highly controversial.
Flick’s side also felt they had reason to argue that Girona’s second goal on Monday should not have counted, after Claudio Echeverri apparently stepped on Jules Kounde’s foot before Beltran scored. The decisive winner was awarded following a VAR check.
It is difficult to say where the game goes from here, but the certain thing is that clubs who lose will look for something external to blame if they have to. Right now, match officials have a bullseye on their backs.
