Barcelona's referee outrage: What angry Hansi Flick & his players said about Szymon Marciniak's controversial Champions League performance as Inter boss Simone Inzaghi lauds Polish official as 'one of the best'

Barcelona head coach Flick and his players were utterly exasperated by the refereeing performance of Poland's Szymon Marciniak, claiming that several of his calls were unjust. The reaction comes in the aftermath of the club's heartbreaking Champions League exit to Inter in the semi-finals, as the Nerazzurri won 4-3 on the night and 7-6 on aggregate to progress to their second final in three seasons.

Several Barcelona players, as well as their manager, condemned the refereeing following their 4-3 loss on Tuesday. Pedri, who has been one of the best players in the world this season, went as far as to urge UEFA to "look into" referee Marciniak's performance.

The game, which was truly a spectacle, was marked by a couple of contentious decisions in the second leg at San Siro. In the first half, VAR overturned the initial decision after Pau Cubarsi appeared to win the ball from Lautaro Martinez, awarding a penalty instead. Hakan Calhanoglu calmly converted from the spot. In the second half, Barcelona were initially given a penalty when Henrikh Mkhitaryan brought down Lamine Yamal, but VAR intervened again, with replays confirming the foul occurred just outside the box but that contact may have carried on inside the area.

Flick raised questions over the officiating, claiming that most of the 50-50 calls went against his side. "I know that everyone’s disappointed now that we’re out, but it’s because we invested a lot in this match," the German head coach told reporters after the game. "We came back again (into the game), and I think some decisions, like the 50/50, were always for Inter, but it’s like that, we have to accept it. It’s football.

"I’m proud of my team, we gave everything, and sometimes you feel like it’s unfair because some decisions the referee made were not for our side, but it’s like that. We have to accept it, and we’ll start again next season. Winning the Champions League is one of our goals, because the fans deserve it. We’ll be back next season in the Champions League."

In contrast, Inter boss Simone Inzaghi heaped praise on Marciniak. "That's Barca's opinion, he's one of the best referees in Europe and he had a great match," the Italian told Movistar's Ricardo Sierra (h/t AS).

A number of Barca players didn't shy away from letting their feelings be known. Eric Garcia, who scored an exquisite goal to help his side get back into the game, was highly critical of Marciniak. "I don't know what's wrong with this stadium. I've been here three times, and for one reason or another, or due to unrelated reasons, things haven't gone our way. We all know what happened with this referee the last time we came here," Garcia told the media (h/t MARCA).

Ronald Araujo joined in, adding that the referee failed to penalise Denzel Dumfries for a potential foul on Gerard Martin just moments before the Dutchman assisted Francesco Acerbi's equaliser. "Did the referee have anything to do with it? I think so. In the 3-3 play, it was a foulon Gerard Martin. He went for the ball and didn't let us play it. But we shouldn't make excuses; we have to keep our heads up. This team has a direct mentality and is a generation that will surely win many Champions Leagues."

Inigo Martinez also had his fair share of complaints, stating: "Everyone saw today that the decisions always went the same way. Although we don't want to blame him. We're holding our heads high."

Although the Catalans crashed out of the Champions League, they still have a chance of ending the season with a domestic double. After beating Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final, Flick's troops can all but put the Liga title race out of their arch rivals' reach when the two sides meet at the Montjuic on Sunday, May 11. Barcelona currently hold a four-point lead over Carlo Ancelotti's side.