Barcelona manager Hansi Flick tore into the officiating after his side’s 2-0 home defeat by Atletico ​Madrid in the Champions League, raging over a second-half penalty ‌call and Pau Cubarsi’s red card that left his ​team a man down before half-time.

Flick’s anger ⁠centred on an incident in the 53rd minute when Barca appealed for a penalty.

Goalkeeper Juan Musso appeared to have put the ball in ‌play from a goal kick before defender Marc Pubill handled it inside the six-yard box to ‌retake the goal kick. Referee Istvan Kovacs waved play ‌on ⁠and the VAR crew did not call him ⁠to the monitor, sparking animated protests from the home bench.

“I don’t know why VAR hasn’t been used. The referee … I think he’s brilliant. We ​all make mistakes, but ‌what’s the point of VAR? I just can’t understand it. It should have been a penalty, a second yellow and a red card as he already had a ‌booking. This is exactly what shouldn’t happen,” Flick told ​Spanish broadcaster Movistar Plus.

Atletico manager Diego Simeone saw it differently.

“It’s a matter of common sense,” Simeone ⁠told reporters.

“The referee saw it as, it was. That Marc (Pubill) received what appeared to be a pass from his teammate ‌to start the move, the referee saw it the same way as Marc saw it. Then we can look at as many situations as we like.”

Barcelona had already been reduced to 10 men in the 44th minute as Cubarsi was sent off for hauling down Giuliano Simeone as ‌the last man. Julian Alvarez brilliantly curled in the resulting free ​kick before the interval and Alexander Sorloth sealed the win after the break.

Flick also questioned the dismissal.

“I’m ⁠not sure if he made enough contact because the ball ⁠was behind him; I’m not entirely sure,” he said.

“I don’t know. It might be, or it might not ‌be. I don’t know if he touched him enough. But in other situations, when the ball is touched ​by the hand, it’s very clear to me.”

Published on Apr 09, 2026