Atletico Madrid have pushed back against the complaints made by Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho regarding the officiating in the recent Madrid derby. The Portuguese coach arrived at the post‑match press conference brandishing printed sheets that, in his view, illustrated two incidents that should have resulted in red cards for Atletico players.
Mourinho accused the officials of committing decisive errors that, in his opinion, altered the outcome of a match Real ultimately lost 2-1. In retaliation, Atletico took to their X (formerly Twitter) platform on Monday with two distinct posts. The first was a short video that showed a piece of paper being printed with the hashtag "#StopAcosoArbitalYA," which translates to "stop referee harassment now." The second post displayed a still of Mourinho at the press conference, overlaid with the same hashtag, signalling the club's displeasure with the manager's public outburst. During the press conference, Mourinho held up photographs of two tackles he believed warranted straight red cards.
He was particularly incensed that Atletico defender Cristian Romero was not expelled after a stamping challenge on Jude Bellingham. Mourinho also pointed to a challenge by Lee Kang‑in on Federico Valverde that, in his assessment, should have been punished more severely.
He noted that the visitors were reduced to ten men just five minutes after the half‑time break, a moment that he felt should have been even more damaging to Atletico had the earlier incidents been dealt with appropriately. "We could skip the press conference because the story of the match is right here," Mourinho said, waving the images as he launched into a near five‑minute tirade. "Those were two clear red cards.
The difficulties we've faced since the sending‑off – eleven against ten – well, we can imagine what fifty minutes of eleven against nine would have looked like if justice had been done." The match itself saw Real defender Dean Huijsen sent off after bringing down Giuliano Simeone inside the penalty area, which allowed Alejandro Grimaldo to slot home a low spot‑kick. Six minutes later, Jonathan David doubled Atletico's lead, while Antonio Rudiger headed in a free‑kick late on to narrow the gap for Real. Mourinho, after praising his squad for a first‑half display he described as "full of class and great character," turned his ire toward referee Miguel Angel Ortiz Arias and the officials responsible for his appointment.
"They've put a referee, aged 41, with no international experience – it's certainly not because he's a great referee," Mourinho asserted. "Then the poor chap has come here and hasn't been able to cope with the pressure – and it really is intense pressure. I call it '80s‑style pressure' here in this stadium, which you hardly ever see these days." When asked about Real's six‑point deficit to Barcelona, Mourinho responded sharply: "If they just leave us in peace and let us compete on a level playing field with everyone else, we've still got a long way to go." He stopped short of alleging any conspiracy, saying, "I don't want to go so far as to say this was set up...
I want to believe that they simply made a mistake." Real Madrid later issued an official match report that echoed many of Mourinho's points, describing the defeat as "marked by poor officiating." The club claimed that Ortiz Arias failed to dismiss Cristian Romero after the first‑half stamp on Bellingham, despite reviewing the incident on a monitor, and also neglected to punish Lee Kang‑in for a challenge on Valverde that involved studs making contact with the left ankle. According to the report, these two decisions were pivotal, shaping a match that ultimately swung in Atletico's favour during the second half. The report detailed the sequence of events: up to the 30th minute the game featured few dangerous chances, but after that point controversy began to dominate. In the 35th minute, during a contested ball, Bellingham reached the ball before Romero, only for the Atletico defender to plant his studs into the Madrid player's left knee.
Ortiz Arias initially issued a yellow card to Bellingham, but after a review prompted by referee Trujillo Suárez, he rescinded that caution and instead booked Romero, stopping short of a dismissal. Nine minutes later, another contentious moment occurred when Lee Kang‑in challenged Valverde, striking the Spanish midfielder's ankle with his studs. Ortiz Arias was reportedly close to the incident but chose not to issue any card, nor did Trujillo Suárez intervene, leaving the decision unpunished. Atletico's social‑media response, featuring the anti‑harassment hashtag, underscores a growing tension between clubs and officials in La Liga, where accusations of bias and inconsistent refereeing have become more frequent.
Both sides have now entered a public dispute, with Mourinho using the post‑match platform to amplify his grievances, while Atletico seeks to defend its reputation and call for respect toward referees. The episode highlights the broader issue of how refereeing errors are handled in top‑flight football, especially in high‑stakes derbies where emotions run high and the margin for error is slim.
While technology such as VAR aims to reduce clear mistakes, the subjective nature of many fouls—particularly those involving studs or potential violent conduct—means that disagreements will likely persist. As the season progresses, both Real and Atletico will need to navigate these controversies while focusing on their league objectives. Real, still trailing Barcelona, will hope to close the gap, while Atletico will aim to maintain momentum after a hard‑fought victory at the Metropolitano. Meanwhile, the refereeing body faces pressure to review its appointment procedures and ensure that officials of sufficient experience are assigned to marquee fixtures, lest further public spats undermine the credibility of the competition.
The saga serves as a reminder that football is not only contested on the pitch but also in the realm of narratives, where managers, clubs, and officials each strive to shape the story that fans ultimately consume.