Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez said referee Mateu Lahoz did not officiate well in the Catalans’ 3-2 win at Sevilla.
Lahoz sent off the home side’s Gary Medel on 72 minutes before missing an apparent handball that led to Barca’s second goal scored by Cesc Fabregas.
However, Xavi insisted at a post-match Press conference that the man in the middle did neither side any favours throughout the match.
“Mateu Lahoz did not referee well, neither for them nor for us. None of the teams can have any complaints,” said the Spanish international.
“It was a game where we knew we would need to fight for anything, particularly when they got the advantage of a two-goal lead, but we never gave up.
“I think we started well although their first goal was a setback, but after the break we were better, showed a lot of pride and eventually secured the victory.”
Barca’s next La Liga game is against Real Madrid at the Camp Nou, but Xavi insists any thoughts of El Clasico will be put on the back burner until after the midweek Champions League clash with Benfica.
“We are not thinking of the Real Madrid game because we have a match in Lisbon that will not be easy.
“We’ll have to recover well to face it because it is essential that we qualify for the knock-out phase. For now we just have to enjoy this win over Sevilla,” he added.
