Real Madrid Slam Referee Ortiz Arias After Derby Loss

Real Madrid have kept up the pressure on referee Ortiz Arias two days after the 2-1 derby defeat to Atlético Madrid, with the club's television channel accusing him of cowardice over two incidents the club say should have produced red cards.

Cuti Romero escaped with a yellow card after catching Jude Bellingham with his studs, and Kang-in Lee was not sent off for a high, studs-up challenge on Fede Valverde's ankle. Both incidents came in the first half at the Metropolitano, in a match Real Madrid felt was finely balanced until those decisions went against them.

"Either it's a premeditated error or the referee is a coward without honour or professionalism," Real Madrid TV said. "The VAR is damaging the competition and, in particular, Real Madrid."

José Mourinho brought printed images of both challenges to his post-match press conference.

"The story of the match is all here, they are two clear red cards," Mourinho said, before turning on the Spanish refereeing committee for appointing a 41-year-old official who has not worked as an international referee. "He must not be one of the best, evidently."

Real Madrid TV had already flagged Ortiz Arias before kick-off, objecting to his appointment after what the channel called friendly remarks toward Barcelona players during and after a match against Athletic Bilbao.

"They reward him with the derby after he ingratiated himself with the Barça players," the channel said in its pre-match broadcast. "If he hadn't done that, it would have ended his career politically. To get promoted, they already know who to favour and who to penalise. That alone would put you off taking the pitch today, but it seems nobody else minds. They get penalised against Barça, but they know they'll get their revenge against Real Madrid. If a referee makes a mistake in Real Madrid's favour, they sack him. And if you complain, they call you a crybaby. We'll see what kind of refereeing awaits us today."

The channel's commentators returned to the Romero incident during the broadcast itself. "The foul is a clear red card. It's obvious. It's a red card straight out of the textbook, absolutely clear. It's a sending-off," one said after a replay, adding: "What a disgrace, what a disgrace, what a disgrace... What yellow card is that for Romero? Ortiz Arias has just trampled on someone again, what a disgrace."

The Valverde challenge has proved the more costly of the two for Real Madrid. The club have since confirmed the captain suffered a serious injury to his left ankle in the tackle from Lee, the Atlético forward who has scored two goals since his move to the club in August 2026, and he may now be out for two to three weeks.

The result leaves Real Madrid, who went into the derby six points behind Barcelona, facing a longer wait to close the gap, and now without Valverde for several league fixtures while the refereeing row over Ortiz Arias runs on.