Atlético has mocked Barcelona and Real Madrid for complaining about the refereeing

According to Spanish newspaper *Marca*, while Atlético manager Diego Simeone has criticised both Spanish football giants for what he sees as undue pressure on referees, Atlético has no plans to issue an official response to Barcelona’s statement last Thursday.

Barcelona had announced that it had lodged a formal complaint with UEFA in protest at a refereeing decision it considered to be in breach of current regulations and which directly affected the course and result of its last match, a move that came as a major surprise to Atlético officials.

Atlético maintains that a side of Barcelona’s quality and technical ability should not attribute Tuesday’s defeat to the controversial ‘Marc Bopel’ incident, The Rojiblancos view the incident as a mere fluke that did not affect the match, and they are therefore surprised that Camp Nou would seize on such a minor detail to lodge a complaint with UEFA.

Beyond mere surprise, there is a palpable sense of resentment and frustration at the Wanda Metropolitano, where the club feels the two giants—including arch-rivals Real Madrid—systematically pressure referees through what they call a “working approach”.

Atlético officials argue that the media power of both clubs can sway referees who often arrive on matchday already under intense scrutiny, facing criticism and doubts about their impartiality and the entire refereeing system.

Read also: Refereeing expert cries out: What happened with Barcelona against Atlético is a scandal

Atlético Madrid draws a clear line between Barcelona’s official complaint and the Rojiblancos’ own formal request for clarification to the Referees’ Technical Committee. That request followed the overturned red card shown to Gerard Martín, and it cited post-derby tweets as evidence of the Blaugrana’s “media machine”.

At the time, Atlético argued that the decision contradicted the explanation given for a similar incident in the Betis vs. Rayo Vallecano match, suggesting that the VAR intervention to overturn referee Busquets Ferrer’s original red card was incorrect. The club accepted those explanations, even though they confirmed they had been aggrieved in the La Liga encounter.

Insiders at Atlético still ask, with a hint of sarcasm, how Barça or Real Madrid would have reacted to a similar scenario—pointing specifically to the Julián Álvarez penalty (a spot-kick that UEFA later stated should have been re-taken rather than counted as missed) during the shoot-out that saw them knocked out of last season’s Champions League by Los Blancos.