Pablo Maffeo tore into the officials during Valencia's clash with Real Madrid, fuming over fouls he reckoned should never have been given. The right-back made his feelings clear at half-time, with the visitors two goals to the good at the Mestalla in La Liga.
Speaking to the "DAZN" network in the between-halves interview, Maffeo said he hadn't wanted to do it at all. The timing was all wrong, he argued, with the players still in the thick of the game, though he eventually agreed to take the questions.
"All we need is for the referee to be fairer," the Valencia man added. "I don't think the first goal came from a foul, and that affects us".
Maffeo admitted his side needed to sharpen up and get into the opposition box more often. Even so, he insisted Valencia were putting up a real fight despite trailing by two.
The anger stemmed from a foul the referee gave in Kylian Mbappe's favour after a challenge by the Spanish full-back. That decision sparked the move that ended with Fede Valverde's opener. Arda Guler then doubled the lead, sending Real Madrid in at the break two goals up.