Clement Lenglet’s dismissal for a phantom elbow on Girona’s Pere Pons in the 2-2 draw with Barcelona on Sunday caused all sorts of controversy.
Referee Gil Manzano’s VAR-assisted decision was bewildering even to Pons, and Spanish football conspiracy theorists were soon at their keyboards – pointing out that Manzano has now sent off five Barca players in the past three years.
Even Pons was surprised by the decision to dismiss Lenglet, with the midfielder admitting afterwards that he even thought he had fouled the French defender.
“I took a blow but when I got up, I apologised to Lenglet and shook his hand because I thought it was my fault,” he confessed.
Bemused Blaugrana boss Ernesto Valverde pointed out afterwards: “It’s the first time that the player who is sent off receives an apology from his rival for fouling him.”
The Catalan giants were leading 1-0 at the time through Lionel Messi’s goal at the time but were ultimately indebted to Gerard Pique’s second-half equaliser allowing them to salvage a 2-2 draw.
The dropped points allowed rivals Real Madrid to draw level at the summit of La Liga and reignited the ongoing debate among each side’s fans about preferential treatment from referees.
However, it’s difficult for the Catalans to claim they are being victimised.
Since Opta began recording data for red cards in La Liga back in 2012, Barca have only had 12 players dismissed. To put that in context, Malaga and Valencia top the table with a whopping 40 reds apiece.
Furthermore, Los Blancos have racked up 22 reds over the past six years, suggesting that referees aren’t afraid to give Madrid players their marching orders.
However, while Real fans might use the facts to cry foul, any allegations of refereeing bias would be undermined by the role of Sergio Ramos in distorting the numbers.
The most red-carded player in La Liga history has been dismissed seven times since 2012 alone, meaning he accounts for just under one third of Real’s reds during this time (32 per cent).
In addition, there have been seven Clasico reds in the past six years (five for Real; two for Barca), and Ramos accounts for three of them.
Barca can hardly argue that they are the victims of some sort of refereeing conspiracy in light of how few reds they actually receive, while Real cannot really feel that hard done by, given the presence of the notoriously temperamental Ramos.
