“They stole the game from us”: FC Barcelona superstar vents at the referees after a bitter exit and clashes with Atlético Madrid fans

The officials were “very poor”, Raphinha continued. “It’s unbelievable the decisions they made. I don’t know how many fouls Atlético committed today – and the referee didn’t show them a single yellow card...”

While Turpin generally kept control at the heated Metropolitano, the French official’s failure to produce a single yellow card for the home side was notable. He correctly ruled out Ferran Torres’s 3–1 “goal” for offside after a VAR review, a decision that would have sent Barcelona into extra time.

Tensions boiled over in the 80th minute when Barça’s Eric Garcia was sent off. The defender brought down substitute Alexander Sörloth as the striker raced towards goal, and although Jules Kounde might have recovered in time to deny a clear scoring opportunity, Turpin initially showed only a yellow card. Turpin first reached for a yellow card, but after consulting VAR he reviewed the incident on the pitch-side monitor and upgraded it to a straight red—controversial yet defensible.

Raphinha remained fixated on the first leg as he vented his frustration. “One mistake in a match can happen, but two in a row? I can’t comprehend it. I’d like to understand why referees seem afraid of Barcelona winning,” the Brazilian snapped, having been forced to watch both games from the sidelines.

In last week’s 2-0 home defeat in the first leg, Barca had been denied a potential penalty. In the 54th minute, Atlético goalkeeper Juan Musso appeared to have already taken a goal kick, which defender Marc Pubill controlled with his hand inside the six-yard box before restarting play with another goal kick.

Barça immediately appealed for handball and a penalty, yet referee Istvan Kovacs allowed play to continue. One explanation is that, since the ball had not fully left the six-yard box when Musso played it, the officials may not have considered the initial action a valid goal kick.

“The goalkeeper plays it to him, he touches it with his hand. Come on, that’s crystal clear. I have no idea why the VAR didn’t intervene. I don’t understand it,” Barcelona manager Hansi Flick told DAZN after the match.

Pau Cubarsi’s late first-half red card for a professional foul had left Barça frustrated at the interval. Determined to overturn the deficit, the Blaugrana arrived in Madrid fired up and ready to strike back.

Their plan worked initially, as goals from Lamine Yamal (4’) and Ferran Torres (24’) put Barça 2-0 ahead inside 24 minutes, levelling the aggregate scoreline. Ademola Lookman pulled one back for Atlético in the 31st minute, a goal that ultimately sent the hosts through to the Champions League semi-finals.

“Over the two legs, we were clearly the better side,” said Flick, frustrated by Barça’s elimination. “But that’s football, and we have to accept it.”

After the final whistle, Raphinha traded barbs with celebrating Atlético fans, suggesting they would exit at the semi-final stage. Die Colchoneros now look set to face Arsenal in the next round. The Gunners began their quarter-final as strong favourites and won the first leg in Portugal 1-0. On Wednesday evening, the Gunners aim to seal the deal in the return leg in front of their home crowd.

Atlético goalkeeper Musso hit back at Raphinha’s claims that Barcelona had been robbed. “You can’t say this match was stolen from them; that’s ridiculous,” the 31-year-old Argentine told reporters.

He added that Barça’s complaints about the two red cards were overblown, remarking, “They acted as if they should have had three penalties and we should have had four sendings-off. We won on the pitch, 2–0 away, and when you’re the last man back, you get a red card.”

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