Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos believes his controversial second half penalty in their 3-1 El Clasico win over Barcelona was the right call.
Referee Juan Martinez Munuera consulted VAR before awarding a 63rd minute spot kick after Ramos appeared to be pulled back by Barcelona defender Clement Lenglet at a free kick.
Despite replays indicating both players were impeding each other inside the box, Martinez awarded the penalty, which Ramos converted to make it 2-1 to the visitors.
Substitute Luka Modric added a third goal in added time for Zinedine Zidane’s side and Ramos told a post-match interview that the decision was justified.
“I think it is a very clear decision,” he told an interview with Marca.
“He pulls me as I am about to jump and that is clear. It is unfair to judge the referee on an incident that was so clear.
“From there we pushed on and took advantage to win the game 3-1.”
Ramos’ goal tipped the balance of the game in Real Madrid’s favour following two early strikes from Federico Valverde and Ansu Fati.
However, despite creating chances to score after the break, Barcelona were unable to make the most of opportunities for Fati and Philippe Coutinho, as Real Madrid’s ruthlessness edged their first La Liga El Clasico victory since 2016.
