Gerard Pique says there is no question Sergio Ramos deserved to be sent off as Barcelona beat Real Madrid in Sunday’s Clasico, with Barca sporting director Robert Fernandez calling for Ramos to face an investigation for the way he reacted to his 77th-minute red card.
Referee Alejandro Jose Hernandez Hernandez took the decision to dismiss Ramos after he lunged in two-footed on eventual match-winner Lionel Messi by the halfway line.
Ramos didn’t go quietly, though, and left the Santiago Bernabeu pitch gesturing, applauding and directing comments at someone.
“I am sure when he gets home he will realise it was a red card,” Pique told reporters after Barca’s 3-2 win took them to the top of La Liga.
“It was clear: he went in with both feet off the ground, nowhere near the ball. There’s no argument. What happens is that [Madrid] are used to having very permissive referees here and when there isn’t one, that’s how they react.”
Pique added that he thought Ramos’ complaints after the red card were directed at him, but he didn’t hear what was said.
“I didn’t hear him, I saw that he was pointing at me, I suppose he was referring to the red card,” the Barca defender said.
“When he gets home and sees the replay he will regret [his reaction], because it’s a clear dismissal. It’s a straight red card.”
Speaking to reporters in the mixed zone after Pique’s comments, Ramos said that he did not regret what had happened and insisted that he felt his challenge only merited a yellow card.
On his reaction to the dismissal, he said: “I wasn’t recriminating the referee for anything, no. I was talking to Pique, not to the referee. Sometimes referees get things right, other times they don’t. It was a key moment. But my reaction was to Pique, not the referee.
“[Barcelona] have a way of understanding football and they always talk about the referees and maybe that ends up bearing results.
“We’re not going to talk about the referees, though, that’s not our style. It’s not our sport. I wasn’t directing [gestures] at the referee, but at Pique, who is the one who always likes to talk about referees.”
Questioned on Pique’s comments that referees often favour Madrid, Ramos added: “Permissive [refereeing] was their game against PSG.
“Pique likes to talk about referees. I said to him [when leaving the pitch] that with so much pressure and complaining in every tweet, it’s going to end up having an effect.”
However, Ramos said that he doesn’t have a bad relationship with Pique — who he partners in the middle of Spain’s defence — although said he can’t be expected to embrace him after such a highly charged Clasico.
Fernandez, meanwhile, said the situation was remarkably similar to the one that sees Neymar currently serving a three-game ban
“Ramos’ dismissal was completely fair and if I’m being honest Casemiro shouldn’t have still been on the pitch after the first half,” Fernandez told Movistar.
“Then Ramos applauded [as he left the pitch]. I suppose the [RFEF’s Competition Committee] will take note … it’s a very similar situation to Neymar’s. I don’t know who he was directing the applause at, but they should take note.”
Ramos’ reaction to his red card was not included in the referee’s post-game report, with only a reason for the dismissal given.
In contrast, after Neymar was sent off against Malaga, the official from that game, Jesus Gil Manzano, did mention the Brazil star’s reaction in his report.
However, the difference in this case is that Ramos maintains his gesturing and applauding was directed at Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, not Hernandez Hernandez.
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