Sevilla Boss: Real Madrid Were Handed a Lifeline to Avoid Falling 9 Points Behind Ahead of El Clásico

Sevilla head coach Luis García Plaza launched a scathing attack on the officiating following his side's 4-1 defeat away to Real Madrid in Matchday 9 of La Liga. The main talking point after the clash remained a controversial 22nd-minute incident in which Madrid midfielder Arda Güler elbowed Gerard Fernández (Peque) as the latter tried to hold him back. The Sevilla player went down clutching his face, but referee Mateo Busquets Ferrer waved play on, and the VAR team opted against calling him over to the pitchside monitor.

The Andalusians' manager made no attempt to hide his frustration during the post-match press conference: "The officiating… At full strength, they [Real Madrid] fully deserved the win, but the game could have been entirely different. We were robbed of the opportunity to play 11 against 10. I don't want to talk any more about the match, but it's incredible that nobody is addressing this. At half-time, Peque kept saying: 'He hit me, he really hit me.' Maybe we wouldn't have won, but in the 25th minute at their stadium with the score at 0-0, we should have had a man advantage. Why wasn't the referee called to the VAR monitor? Perhaps so they wouldn't fall nine points behind ahead of El Clásico. It was a clear-cut case for video assistant intervention—everything was crystal clear. We are outraged," stated the Sevilla boss.

Former Spanish referee Eduardo Iturralde González also weighed in on the controversy, expressing bewilderment over the television footage: "The quality of the footage is remarkably poor—it's impossible to see clearly if there's contact with Peque's face. It looks as though they didn't want it to be seen; I refuse to believe they don't possess a clearer angle."

In the end, Real Madrid cruised to a comprehensive 4-1 victory. Kylian Mbappé netted a brace, Yan Diomande contributed a goal and an assist, while Arda Güler himself also found the back of the net, opening the scoring just seconds after the contentious flashpoint.