Toronto Star
· collected 2026-09-20 · by Tales Azzoni The Associated Press
José Mourinho criticized the referee and VAR after Real Madrid lost 2-1 to Atletico Madrid in a Spanish league match where Real played with ten men for most of the second half. He showed photos during his post-match press conference, claiming two clear red cards were missed by Atletico players. Mourinho also accused the refereeing committee of bias against his team and complained about the referee's experience level and VAR official’s history in handling Madrid matches.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-20,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Atletico Madrid beat Real Madrid 2-1 in a heated La Liga derby match on September 20 at the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid. The match saw Atletico rise to second place with 15 points, trailing Barcelona by five points, while Real Madrid dropped to fourth with 13 points. Early in the second half, Dean Huijsen of Real Madrid was sent off for denying a goal-scoring opportunity, leaving his team down to ten men. Despite this disadvantage, Real Madrid managed a late consolation goal from Antonio Rüdiger. Atletico's goals were scored by Alejandro Grimaldo and Jonathan David in the second half.
Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho was highly critical of the officiating post-match, presenting printed photos to media during his press conference to highlight what he believed were missed red cards for Cristian Romero and Lee Kang-In, both from Atletico. Mourinho argued that these missed penalties significantly impacted Real Madrid's performance in the second half when they played a man down nearly the entire time. Despite the loss, Atletico manager Diego Simeone remained content with his team's victory. The controversy over officiating decisions overshadowed much of the post-match discussion. Both teams now face their next league matches after an international break.
Written for “Madrid Derby Controversy” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 9 other(s) covering the same event.
MADRID (AP) — José Mourinho was back to his old self on Sunday, lashing out at the refereeing following 10-man Real Madrid’s 2-1 loss at Atletico Madrid in the Spanish league.
asserted
Mourinho → lash → league
Mourinho took a piece of paper with photos to the post-match news conference, saying there were “two clear red cards” that weren’t shown to Atletico players.
asserted
that → take → players
The Madrid coach then spent nearly five minutes complaining of “strange” things that have happened to his team this season and in the past.
asserted
that → spend → past
“We could skip the news conference, because the story of the match is right here (on the photos),” Mourinho said.
uncertain
Mourinho → skip → photos
“Given the difficulties we faced playing 11 against 10, one can only imagine what it would have been like to play 50 minutes at 11 against nine.
asserted
it → give → nine
So I’ll simply embrace my players.”
asserted
I → embrace → players
Mourinho and Madrid wanted red cards for Atletico’s Cristian “Cuti” Romero and Lee Kang-in for hard fouls on Madrid players.
asserted
Mourinho → want → players
Madrid ended playing nearly all of the second half with 10 men after Dean Huijsen was sent off in the 52nd minute.
asserted
Huijsen → end → minute
Atletico scored in the 53rd and 59th minutes to move past Madrid in the standings.
asserted
Atletico → score → standings
Madrid’s lone goal came late.
asserted
goal → come → ?
He said “those who should be happy, aside from the Atletico fans, are those in the refereeing committee.”
asserted
who → say → committee
“It’s all been very strange,” Mourinho said.
asserted
Mourinho → say → ?
“First of all, the referee was known a week before the match, but I’m told that’s usually announced just 24 hours in advance.
asserted
that → know → advance
Then he is a 41-year-old referee who isn’t on the international list, so it can’t be because he’s a great referee.
asserted
he → ’ → list
The poor guy came here and couldn’t handle the pressure.”
asserted
guy → come → pressure
Mourinho also didn’t like how VAR allegedly acted against Madrid.
uncertain
VAR → like → Madrid
“The VAR official, he called the referee over for the first red card, though I don’t think he did so for the second, which was an even clearer case than the first, and he has quite a track record in the VAR in Real Madrid matches,” Mourinho asserted.
asserted
Mourinho → call → matches
Until now, the veteran and often outspoken coach had been showing a calmer version of himself after returning for his second stint with Madrid.
asserted
veteran → show → Madrid
“I would have liked to leave here today with a victory, without having to talk about this.
asserted
I → like → this
I’ve been here for three months now, and I think you’ve all seen that I haven’t usually gone in this direction,” Mourinho said.
asserted
Mourinho → think → direction
“Two red cards against Elche and we still won, but two red cards today is a bit more difficult.
asserted
cards → win → Elche
This combination: a poor referee who has only officiated small games and a VAR official with a long history.
asserted
who → officiate → history
Atletico coach Diego Simeone called for respect from coaches while reacting to Mourinho’s comments.
asserted
Simeone → call → comments
“We all lose sometimes,” Simeone said, “but you can’t cross the line of respect, regardless if your name is Mourinho, (Hansi) Flick or Simeone.”
asserted
name → lose → respect
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