Atletico calls for an end to “ref intimidation” after Mourinho’s outburst

Nearly 24 hours after the derby, Atlético de Madrid kept the spotlight on what José Mourinho said in the Metropolitano press room. As MARCA writes, his remarks—focused on refereeing—turned the post-match mood into an “arbitral storm” that the club expects will linger.

Metropolitano’s reply

The response started on social media. First came the post “Stop acoso arbitral ya”, illustrated with Mourinho’s image, a line MARCA links to the club’s intention to criticise the technical staff’s stance.

Red lines and integrity

Beyond the online messaging, Atlético’s message to MARCA was straightforward: there are “red lines” that shouldn’t be crossed. “Hay líneas rojas que no se pueden traspasar y lo han vuelto a hacer. No se puede faltar al respeto”, they said.

The club also argued that the bigger risk goes beyond any single referee decision. “Peligra la integridad del fútbol español. O les paramos ahora o no habrá vuelta atrás”, they added in statements to the outlet. As MARCA further details, Atlético believes attempts are being made to shift the focus away from the refereeing debate and doubts the effectiveness of recent changes involving the CTA.

Finally, the Madrid-based side mocked the situation with a pointed jab about officiating choices, saying that the only designation they would like would be Megía Dávila. The controversy ends with more irony about printing “all the errors” that, in their view, benefited Real Madrid.