Key Takeaways
- Barcelona have filed a second formal protest to Uefa over the refereeing in both legs of their Champions League quarter-final defeat by Atletico Madrid.
- The Catalan club claim two red cards and an ignored handball cost them dearly, causing “sporting and financial damage”.
- Uefa had already dismissed an earlier complaint, but Barca vow to keep pushing for rule changes.
Barcelona insist that poor officiating ended their Champions League dream and have taken the rare step of lodging another official grievance with European football’s governing body.
The Spanish champions were beaten 3-2 on aggregate by neighbours Atletico Madrid. After losing the first match 2-0 at the Wanda Metropolitano, they won the return leg 2-1 at home, yet still fell short.
Both fixtures finished with ten men in Blaugrana shirts. Teenage centre-back Pau Cubarsi saw red in Madrid, and French defender Eric Garcia followed him in the return game. In each case the on-field referee upgraded a yellow to a straight red after watching a slow-motion replay at the side of the pitch.
Barca also believe they were denied a clear penalty when Atleti’s Marc Pubill handled inside the area in the opening leg. Video officials chose not to call the referee over, a decision the club label a “grave VAR failure”.
Uefa rejected Barcelona’s first letter of complaint, calling it “inadmissible”. Undeterred, the club sent fresh documents listing “several decisions that break the laws of the game” and demanding better use of technology.
“The wrong calls changed the path of the tie and hurt us in sport and money terms,” the club said in a statement.
Brazilian winger Raphinha, who sat out both legs with injury, went further, telling reporters: “For me, both games were stolen.”
Barcelona end their message by offering to work with Uefa on stricter, clearer rules so that “refereeing becomes fairer and more open for everyone”.