Real Madrid’s 4-1 victory over Sevilla on Sunday sparked another refereeing controversy after midfielder Arda Guler escaped a red card for appearing to elbow an opponent.
Sevilla were unhappy with the decision during the La Liga match at the Santiago Bernabeu. The incident came at a time when Madrid were already involved in a dispute over refereeing decisions in Spanish football.
Guler appeared to strike a Sevilla player in the face with his elbow while trying to free himself during the first half.
The referee allowed play to continue after a quick VAR check. Guler then scored Madrid’s opening goal just minutes later.
Sevilla coach Luis Garcia Plaza strongly criticised the decision after the match.
“Why didn’t the VAR call the referee?” he asked.
“Maybe because they don’t go into the clasico nine points behind.”
The Sevilla coach suggested that the officials had failed to make the right decision because Madrid were preparing to face Barcelona in next weekend’s El Clasico.
Madrid eventually won the match 4-1 and remained six points behind league leaders Barcelona.
However, the controversy was not limited to the incident involving Guler.
Before the match, Real Madrid had been involved in a public dispute with La Liga president Javier Tebas.
Tebas recently compared Madrid’s attempts to discredit referees with the propaganda methods used by the Nazi regime in Germany.
His comments angered the Spanish club and its supporters.
Real Madrid demanded Tebas’ resignation after he criticised the club in a lengthy social media post on Friday.
The La Liga president had questioned how Real Madrid’s television channel repeatedly blamed refereeing decisions for the team’s poor results.
Madrid supporters responded during Sunday’s match by displaying banners against Tebas at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Some fans also called for him to step down from his position.
Real Madrid later highlighted the protests from supporters and described them as the Bernabeu’s anger towards the La Liga president.
Tebas returned to social media on Sunday to criticise Madrid following the banners displayed against him.
Meanwhile, Madrid coach Jose Mourinho played down the controversy surrounding Guler.
The Portuguese manager said he did not “understand the obsession” with the possible red card.
Despite the latest dispute, Madrid secured an important victory ahead of their meeting with Barcelona.
The result kept Mourinho’s side within six points of their rivals as the two teams prepared for another major clash in the Spanish league.
