Jose Mourinho’s Brutal Referee Takedown Gets Validation From La Liga

Jose Mourinho’s vicious rant against the refereeing decisions that took place during Sunday’s Madrid derby has since earned some validation. La Liga’s Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) reportedly agree that Atlético Madrid’s Kang-In Lee should’ve been sent-off in the first half for a dangerous challenge that injured Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde.

Atlético Madrid defeated Real Madrid 2–1 in a hugely controversial derby on Sunday afternoon. Following the game, Real Madrid manager Mourinho slammed the refereeing decisions because he felt two particular actions were “clear red cards” and came prepared with photos of the actions as evidence.

One of those two actions was headlined by Lee, who caught Valverde with his studs right in the ankle during the dying minutes of a scoreless first half. It was an unquestionably-reckless action that injured Real Madrid’s captain and, incredibly, went unpunished, with neither match referee Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias nor VAR deeming it worthy of a red card.

CTA will offer a verdict on the controversial actions soon, but according to AS, the committee is already aware that Ortiz Arias made a number of mistakes, none bigger than letting Lee off the hook.

Federico Valverde — Kang-In Lee (left) should’ve been punished for this reckless challenge. | Real Madrid

Real Madrid would’ve played with a man advantage for the entirety of the second half and, with the game still level at the break, the final outcome could’ve been much different.

Mourinho also asserted that Cristian Romero should’ve been sent off for catching Jude Bellingham on the knee with his studs earlier in the first half. Ortiz Arias initially booked the Englishman before VAR forced him to review the play for mistaken identity. The referee then switched his verdict, and Romero saw yellow—Mourinho wanted a different color. The review, though, was for mistaken identity, not to determine whether it was worthy of a red card. CTA reportedly excuse Ortiz Arias for his decision, given it was a chaotic action.

Finally, according to AS, CTA agree with the decision to send off Real Madrid center back Dean Huijsen for his foul on Atléti’s Giuliano Simeone, which resulted in a penalty. There was no attempt to play the ball, and he denied the Argentine from a clear goalscoring opportunity, which is why CTA agree that the double punishment (penalty and red card) was the correct decision in this instance.

Ultimately, Huijsen’s red card condemned Los Blancos, who backed their manager and released a statement with the title: “A dreadful refereeing performance decides the derby.”

Atlético Madrid Respond to Mourinho’s Fiery Rant in Familiar Fashion

#StopRefereeHarassmentNOW pic.twitter.com/ZBkAgBq3dV
— Atlético de Madrid (@atletienglish) September 21, 2026

Diego Simeone was quick to describe Mourinho’s unfiltered rant on Ortiz Arias, VAR and the Referee Appointment Committee, as “unacceptable,” accusing him of “crossing a line of respect.”

A day after the match, Atlético Madrid fired back at Mourinho and Los Blancos like they often do: with a series of social media posts.

Los Rojiblancos’ posted images of Mourinho holding up the photos he brought to his post-match press conference along with the title “Stop Referee Harassment Now.” Atléti poked fun at Mourinho’s bizarre antics by posting a video printing out their anti-referee harassment graphics and using a printer emoji as the caption.

This summer, Atlético Madrid went on a vicious social media tirade against Barcelona due to their pursuit of striker Julián Álvarez, posting a series of photoshopped images of Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and others wearing Atléti’s shirt. A similar strategy was employed later to respond to Real Madrid’s reported bid for the Argentine striker.

Sunday’s Madrid derby only heightened the already massive tensions that exist between two fierce rivals. The game certainly had debatable decisions full of controversy, but the response from both teams to what occurred on the pitch and then after the game was nothing if not completely predictable.

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