\n<\/p>\n
At the weekend, there was yet more refereeing controversy in La Liga<\/a>, and while Barcelona<\/a> were not directly involved, they have been brought into the conversation \u2013 and not for the first time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Real Madrid were defeated 2-1 by Atletico Madrid at the RiyadhAir Metropolitano, in a match that had several flashpoints. The Bernabeu club claimed they should have been facing nine men after strong challenges from Cristian Romero and Lee Kang-in, although neither were punished with red cards \u2013 and that led to an explosion post-match.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Jose Mourinho criticised the officiating, while Real Madrid TV claimed that the decision to appoint on-field referee Miguel Angel Ortiz Arias was done to \u201charm\u201d the Merengues. They also made reference to the Negreira case<\/a>, which is often the case when the Bernabeu club feels aggrieved by a refereeing decision in La Liga.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On Wednesday, Barcelona midfielder Rodri<\/a> was asked by Cadena Cope (via MD<\/a>) for his thoughts on the matter, and he made it clear that this discourse should not exist.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI think that hurts football, I think we have to try to avoid that type of discourse, I think football is above it. We are human and we all fail. There are days when you are good and days when you are bad, and there are times when they hurt you and others when they don\u2019t. I like to think like that. It\u2019s okay to defend your club and stand up for your stance \u2013 in fact I\u2019ve done that a few times \u2013 but to a certain extent. I don\u2019t believe in that part.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Rodri could have been on the opposite side of this debate, had he chosen to join Real Madrid in the summer instead of opting for Barcelona. He spoke briefly on the interest that was shown in him from those at the Bernabeu.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cReal Madrid showed interest from the first moment, they had an exemplary behaviour, and the proposals were to go for the player, I want to make that clear. I don\u2019t know what it is to go 100%, but it is clear that they had the interest and they went with everything they had showing interest, which I appreciate because I spoke with some of them. Did I talk to Florentino? I\u2019m going to keep that to myself. I spoke to people there who told me the enthusiasm and desire for me to go there and made my decision more complicated.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n