What’s the story?
Barcelona star Gerard Pique has had a go at arch rivals, Real Madrid once again. Real looked destined for a second loss in a week on the east coast after Wednesday's 2-1 reverse at Valencia but Bale, making his first start since November, headed a goal back in the 64th before Ronaldo controversially levelled with a penalty 10 minutes later.
Alvaro Morata then completed a memorable comeback as Real Madrid beat the Yellow Submarines 3-2 to get back on top of the La Liga table. The key talking point of the match was the penalty awarded for what seemed to be a very harsh handball. Pique had his own say on the matter in his official twitter account:
The tweet when translated read: “Against the same teams. 8 points [swing]. 8 and such. Those cuts are from press of Madrid to avoid doubt."
In case you didn’t know...
This is not the first time Gerard Pique has had a go at the referees and Real Madrid. The Barcelona man had also been miffed in an earlier game week where they lost 2-1 to Athletic and Real had won against Sevilla. At that time, Pique had said to reporters:
"We want to play football and not roulette, which is what this type of refereeing provokes. The penalty claims by Neymar and me are clear but we already know how this works," Pique told reporters.
"We all saw what happened in Madrid's game with Sevilla, I hope referees improve their standards."
Also, Pique has been a pretty outspoken critic of Real Madrid and has never hesitated to air his opinions on his official twitter account.
The above tweet was posted when Madrid suffered a loss and his war of words on twitter with former Real Madrid stars Arbeloa and Guti got both sets of fans heated up.
Also read: Barcelona's Gerard Pique accuses referees of favouring Real Madrid
The heart of the matter
Barcelona secured a gritty 2-1 victory against Atletico Madrid and were on top of the La Liga table. With Villarreal 2-0 ahead, it looked like the Catalan giants would end the game week as League leaders. However, a stirring comeback aided by a controversial refereeing decision saw Madrid come out on top with a 3-2 victory.
The controversial penalty decision could have huge ramifications in the title race and Pique who has been aggrieved with the standard of refereeing so far in the La Liga could not resist venting his frustration on Twitter.
What’s next?
Barcelona have two crucial La Liga games against Sporting Gijon and Celta Vigo coming up and the Catalan side will be desperate to get 6 points and keep up the pressure on leaders Madrid.
Los Blancos are one point ahead and with a game in hand, Zidane will be keen to ensure that the League leaders don’t slip up and secure the League title.
Also read: Real Madrid legend Guti escalates Twitter battle by taunting Barcelona after Sociedad loss
Sportskeeda’s take
While it is natural for Barcelona and Gerard Pique to be frustrated, the Barcelona centre-back has been pretty vocal about his frustrations and further such comments and tweets could attract attention from the disciplinary board.
The refereeing should be improved though and La Liga board and president should look into it and ensure that the standards improve as soon as possible.
