Filipe Luis Comments on Luis Suarez, Referee After Barcelona vs. Atletico Madrid

Atletico Madrid defender Filipe Luis slammed the referee following the 2-1 loss against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, claiming the Catalans are protected and the official should have sent off Luis Suarez for his "aggressive act.”  

The Rojiblanco were leading 1-0 when scorer Fernando Torres was sent off, a decision Luis strongly disagreed with. Per AS (h/t Football Espana), Blaugrana technical director Robert Fernandez said the official "hurt both teams," but Luis thought he must have been watching some other match:

"

We started well until the unfair expulsion which determined a lot. We knew that could happen.

I don’t know what game Robert Fernandez watched. It’s a shame. I’ve made strong statements about Lionel Messi in La Liga but I think Barca are protected.

We’re punished with maximum rigour. It hurts. It causes an earthquake to eliminate Barca. That causes damage to UEFA.

[…]

I was sent off and crucified for just kicking Messi. What do they have to do to be sent off? Suarez’s was an aggressive act, a red card. I was crucified and rightly so, but this is punishable as well.

"

Paul MacDonald of talkSPORT added this quote:

Atleti manager Diego Simeone was reportedly "furious" with Luis in the aftermath of the defender's outburst as he could now face disciplinary action which keeps him out of the second leg, per Ed Malyon in the Mirror.

Suarez scored both Barcelona goals during the second half, but he also made headlines for several controversial incidents.

First, he kicked out at Juanfran while the ball was no longer near the Atletico man. Here's a look at the incident, for which he didn't receive a booking:

After half-time, he was involved in a shoving match with Luis and appeared to raise his hands to the defender's face. For that incident, he received a yellow card:

ESPN FC's Michael Caley thought both were red-card offences:

"

Suarez has scored a goal with his head and another with his feet.

And he's committed a red card offense with his hands, another with feet.

— Michael Caley (@MC_of_A) April 5, 2016"

While Barcelona were by far the better team after half-time and put together plenty of chances, it's easy to see why some of the Atletico players were furious with the referee. Suarez scored both goals after the first incident with Juanfran occurred, and if the referee had sent him off, the match could have played out differently.

Instead, the Uruguayan ensured Barcelona will travel to the Spanish capital with a lead, and while a 1-0 win would still see Atletico through to the semi-finals, the Rojiblanco could have found themselves in a much better position.

Torres also won't be available for the return leg because of his red card, while it remains to be seen if Suarez will be retroactively punished for the incident with Juanfran. He can't be punished for the shove on Luis, as the official spotted the offence and handed him a yellow card.

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