Real Madrid came out on top of Atletico Madrid 3-1 after extra time on Thursday night, sealing their passage through to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. It seemed only natural that it would come served with a hefty side of controversy though.
The decisive play in the eyes of many from the Rojiblanco side of Madrid came in the second half. After Dani Ceballos had come off the bench and already picked up a yellow card, he committed a foul on Thomas Lemar on the edge of the box, but did not see a second yellow.
El árbitro estaba muy lejos y por eso no expulsa a Ceballos pic.twitter.com/zqEzN6Z6Fq
— Pedro Pérez (@pperezf) January 27, 2023
This was much to the indignation of captain Koke Resurreccion, who was seen protesting the referee after the incident but also after the final whistle.
They will compare that with the treatment of Stefan Savic, who was booked for verbals with Vinicius Junior. Barely two minutes later, Savic slid in on Eduardo Camavinga, but did not take the ball and was duly dismissed nine minutes into extra time.
Como la gente compara la patada de savic con lo de Ceballos??? pic.twitter.com/3efBLmpfo2
— javier romero (@javimero29) January 26, 2023
Several Atletico Madrid players complained about the incident afterwards, feeling as if they picked an extremely short straw. Atletico Madrid were a goal up when the Ceballos incident occurred, while Los Blancos got their second and third with a man extra.
His eyes were on the ball. Not a yellow card. He had no idea Lemar was there and tried to clear the ball. Nice try Javier Romaro, great angle.
There is no controversy, ref was absolutely right.