Barcelona: Gerard Pique seen shouting at Real Madrid-supporting La Liga president after penalty decision

Barca players feel Real Madrid have been getting more favourable decisions

Jack Austin
Monday 09 January 2017 07:10 EST
Comments
Pique remonstrated with the officials after the penalty claim was turned down
Pique remonstrated with the officials after the penalty claim was turned down (Getty)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Gerard Pique was spotted shouting at the Real Madrid-supporting La Liga president Javier Tebas after Barcelona’s disappointing 1-1 draw against Villarreal.

Lionel Messi rescued a point for Luis Enrique’s side with a 90th-minute free kick, leaving Barca third in the league and five points adrift of unbeaten leaders Real Madrid.

However, the controversy struck in the second half, when Villarreal’s Bruno Soriano stuck out an arm to divert a Messi shot over the bar.

Pique was incredulous by the decision and after remonstrating with the officials he appeared to turn in the direction of the directors’ box where Tabas was sitting and shout: “Did you see that? Yes, you, you!”

Tebas was in attendance for the game as a guest of honour because Villarreal were unveiling the new name for their Estadio de la Ceramica, previously known as El Madrigal.

Barca’s vice-president Jordi Mestre called the handball “deliberate” after the game as the club, and players, increasingly feel that Real Madrid are being favoured by officials, with an example being the penalty awarded to Luka Modric last week despite it appearing he was pushed by his own teammate.

After the game, Pique said: “Today there were two clear penalties against us that were not given.”

And asked if he thought he would be punished for his outburst he answered: “I still think exactly the same and every week I'm proved right.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in