The Valencian press is very hard with the arbitration team after Barça-Valencia
Scandal, VARgüenza, Mano Negreira and Robo. These are the harsh descriptions that can be read in the Valencian sports press after FC Barcelona’s victory over Valencia at Camp Nou. Following the defeat and the referee failing to signal a contact from Kessié on Fran Pérez in the culé area, which would have meant a penalty and the chance for Valencia to take a point from Camp Nou, the local press has unleashed a wave of criticism toward arbitration.
Robbery, Scandal and Butifarra de chorizo
Superdeporte takes a particularly sharp stance, with the cover declaring Robo and the interior pages dwelling on a line about Butifarra de chorizo to describe Valencia’s performance at Camp Nou. The article insists that Valencia is not where it is because of the referees, yet it adds that the referees are tightening the noose around Valencia, and it notes that with scandals as pungent as the Negreira case the broader football landscape is not stable enough to pretend nothing is amiss. Superdeporte goes further, arguing that Alberola Rojas’s performance at Camp Nou demonstrates that justice in Spanish football is conspicuously absent.
Counter-chronicle the Negreira cloud over Camp Nou
Las Provincias also offers a tough assessment of the Camp Nou match. They headline Varapalo with controversy and present a counter-chronicle under the banner Negreira flies over Camp Nou. Another opinion piece discusses the arbitration damage to Valencia and warns about the risk of being ignored. The newspaper notes that the Association of Small Shareholders of Valencia is weighing legal action for what it calls suspicious arbitration proceedings. The group is considering filing complaints against the RFEF and the Technical Committee of Referees.
Complaints against the RFEF and referees are under review
Levante highlights the moment when Kessié and Fran Pérez collided. In a replay, it is asserted that the Ivorian did not strike the ball but his boot connected with the Valencian player. With five minutes left, the VAR under Jaime Latre did not rule on the incident, ultimately awarding a corner to Mestalla.
Plaza Deportiva covers the controversial action with its own take. It states that in the final stretch Kessié brought down Fran Pérez inside the penalty area and that both Alberola Rojas and VAR ignored the potential penalty. There is contact, they argue, and the Valencian camp continues to protest. The Valencian digital newspaper repeats the objections raised by the Valencia squad and by Miguel Ángel Corona and Rubén Baraja, who maintain that a clear penalty should have been awarded for the challenge on Fran Pérez.
Source: Goal