Marseille officials believe the refereeing played a major role in Real Madrid’s victory on Tuesday, following the decision to award a second penalty to the club, scored by Kylian Mbappé.
Real Madrid, who were down a man (after Dani Carvajal was sent off in the 71st minute), beat Marseille 2-1, thanks to Mbappé’s brace from two penalties.
Coach Roberto De Zerbi spoke after the match, saying, “The referee made a shameful decision. This was not a penalty at all, and I don’t consider it compensation for what happened to Real Madrid in the Real Sociedad match. I don’t want to link the two matches.”
Marseille sporting director Mehdi Benatia said, “Despite Real Madrid’s many chances, we lost to a penalty like this. I don’t mean it was fake, because there was a handball, but the referee was harsh.”
Benatia cited the penalty awarded against Juventus at the Bernabéu in 2015, while he was playing for the Old Lady, which remains highly controversial to this day, noting that Real Madrid always benefits from such refereeing errors.
It is worth noting that De Zerbi also considered Carvajal’s red card incorrect by the referee.
