Hector Bellerin pointed the finger at refereeing decisions after Real Betis were beaten 5-2 by Barcelona at La Cartuja. The Betis defender also insisted his side must own their mistakes, and that the sending-off cannot be allowed to derail their season.
Speaking to Movistar LaLiga, Bellerin argued the contest was largely even through the first half and the opening stages of the second, despite the scale of the task against Barcelona. His opponents, he noted, were not creating the number of chances you would expect in that period.
"Given how difficult it is to defend against a team the size of Barcelona, the chances were fairly even," he said. "There was some possession of the ball, and a team of that quality was not creating enough chances, then came some unfair decisions for both sides, whether the handball that came after a push or the dangerous play, and the two players were not punished in the same way."
The sending-off is a mistake we cannot afford
Facundo Bernal's dismissal dominated his thoughts. Going a man down against that kind of attacking quality made an already hard night harder, Bellerin said, though he confirmed his team-mate had admitted his error and apologised to the squad.
"The sending-off is a mistake we cannot afford," he said. "I spoke with Facundo, and he is aware of his responsibility and has apologised to the team. From that moment on, facing a team of that quality while a man down became a difficult task, but we fought fiercely until the final minutes."
He added: "With 11 players, we proved we are capable of competing with the best teams, and as we always say, against everything and everyone."
Bellerin comments on Betis's disallowed goal
Giovani Lo Celso's goal was another sore point. VAR ruled it out for a handball at the start of the move, and Bellerin believes certain refereeing calls simply do not stack up.
"The referee's job is extremely difficult, but these are very questionable incidents, in which one player is punished and another is rewarded, but I do not want to use that as an excuse," he said.