Alex Kirkland
Rodrigo Faez
Carlo Ancelotti said he prefers Champions League referees — saying there’s “less controversy and fewer VAR interventions” — as Real Madrid prepare to face Manchester City in their playoff second leg in the midst of a row over LaLiga officiating.
Madrid won 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium last week, with Jude Bellingham scoring a 92nd minute winner, to give the reigning champions a “small advantage,” Ancelotti said, going into Wednesday’s game at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Madrid executives met with Spanish refereeing bosses on Monday to review audio recordings of a controversial decision in Madrid’s LaLiga defeat at Espanyol earlier this month, after the club sent an open letter complaining that Spain’s refereeing system was “completely discredited.”
“Yes,” Ancelotti said in a pre-match news conference on Tuesday, when asked if he “felt calmer” with Champions League officiating.
“I think there’s less controversy, and fewer VAR interventions. The VAR only intervenes when it’s necessary. In the Champions League, the best referees in each country officiate, so the quality is very high.”
Madrid have been unhappy with key decisions in their last three LaLiga games: the 1-0 loss at Espanyol, a 1-1 draw with Atlético Madrid, and Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Osasuna, where Bellingham was sent off.
“I’ve given my opinion about what’s happening,” Ancelotti said. “What’s happening is surprising, but I have nothing to add. Obviously we aren’t happy with what happened against Osasuna, Atlético … They were three games where we were hurt by decisions which I still don’t understand.”
Later on Tuesday, LaLiga chief Javier Tebas rejected any suggestions that officiating in the league was “adulterated,” though he admitted there was scope to improve on the existing standard.
Ancelotti said he was “hopeful” that Bellingham would escape a ban for his red card, with Madrid saying the referee was mistaken in his claim that the midfielder had insulted him.
The Italian then confirmed that defender Antonio Rüdiger will be available for the City second leg — after missing out in Manchester — but said right-back Lucas Vázquez wasn’t ready to start.
He also rejected Pep Guardiola’s claim that City have a “1%” chance of progressing to the knockout phase.
“Tomorrow before the game, I’ll ask him if he really thinks that they have a 1% chance!” Ancelotti said. “We don’t think we have a 99% chance. We think we have a small advantage that we have to make the most of.”
“I’m happy with the game we played in the first leg,” Fede Valverde — who played out of position at right-back — added.
“I see how the team is playing, how we’ve been training. That makes you feel calm. You know the team will do well. It gives me confidence that we’ll go through.”
Valverde defended referees during the news conference, provoking ire from many Madrid supporters.
The versatile Uruguay international took to social media later on Tuesday to clarify his comments.
“I don’t want anyone to misunderstand me, but above all I want to clarify for our fans: If today I don’t talk about the refereeing we are suffering it is because I am aware myself, and I must focus on tomorrow,” he wrote.
“Everyone has seen what is happening to us in this league, and I haven’t forgotten it, but now we have to focus on tomorrow, and I will be 100% focused as I have always been.”
