Real Madrid TV has weighed in on the controversy surrounding the decision to overturn the sending-off of Barcelona player Gerard Martín during the La Liga clash between Barça and Atlético Madrid.
According to the Spanish newspaper AS, Real Madrid TV has adopted a critical stance towards Spanish refereeing, viewing the incident as a clear example of double standards.
The channel linked this incident to the sending-off of Federico Valverde against Atlético Madrid, a red card that stood and ruled the player out of the match against Mallorca, a fixture in which Real Madrid lost a significant portion of their chances in the La Liga title race.
The programme “Real Madrid Conecta”, which analyses current events, highlighted the inconsistency in refereeing decisions, asking: “Why wasn’t Valverde’s sending-off overturned by VAR, whilst intervention was made in Gerard Martín’s case? Valverde’s sending-off deprived Real Madrid of his services in the Mallorca match.”
The programme levelled sharp criticism at the standards of the Referees’ Technical Committee, pointing out that Valentín Gómez’s stamping in the 25th round was not punished with a red card; and although the committee later admitted the error, this admission was not taken into account when assessing the Gerard Martín incident.
Real Madrid TV emphasised that there is a hidden hand behind this inconsistency in standards, citing statistics on VAR interventions which revealed that Barcelona benefited from 13 decisions overturned in their favour compared to 7 against them, whilst Real Madrid received 3 decisions in their favour compared to 11 against them.
Journalist Miguel Ángel Muñoz stated on Real Madrid TV that when these statistics are linked to the number of red cards and the Negreira case, the impression arises that there really is a hidden hand at play.
Muñoz went on to emphasise that he cannot trust the referees due to this double standard that always favours Barcelona, questioning the role of Mileru López in the VAR room.
He added that Real Madrid TV is the only outlet proving that what is happening lacks seriousness and legality, which leads him to distrust the refereeing system.
For his part, journalist Paul Tenorio said he would prefer a non-Spanish referee to officiate Real Madrid’s Champions League match against Bayern Munich.
Read also: Leak of the Referees’ Technical Committee’s decision regarding the controversial Gerard Martin incident
