Real's Referee Fury: "Two Clear Red Cards"

The first controversial scene occurred in the 38th minute. Bellingham slid into Romero. The Argentinian played the ball but hit Bellingham with an open sole in the knee area.

Initially, the Englishman was shown a yellow card. After VAR intervention, referee Ortiz rescinded it and showed it to the Atleti defender.

For the "White Ballet," it wasn't enough – a red card would have been quite debatable in this situation.

Shortly after, there was another controversial tackle, this time between Lee and Valverde. The South Korean went with a stretched leg onto Valverde's ankle – for this action, there wasn't even a warning.

Had there been a red card in either of the two situations, the game could have taken a different turn.

After the match, the officials felt the displeasure of Real Madrid.

At the post-match press conference, Real coach Jose Mourinho appeared calm.

Instead of answering questions, the Portuguese held up a screenshot with the two scenes, signaling his opinion on them.

"Those were clear red cards. We can end the press conference now. The poor referee, Ortiz, obviously cannot withstand the pressure in games like these. I want to embrace my players because they gave everything," Mourinho said.

Bellingham also showed little enthusiasm after the final whistle. "Two! Two! Two red cards!" shouted the English international towards the fourth official.

However, that is not the whole truth. It must also be mentioned that Real would have had enough time to deliver a better performance before Huijsen's sending off.

In attack, the "Merengues" often appeared devoid of ideas. Mbappé and Vinicius Jr. repeatedly made independent sprints, only to then attempt shots from long range.

Organized and structured attacks were nowhere to be found. On the other hand, Atletico impressed with variable positional play, beautifully created chances, and a strong mental performance in challenges.

The international break will not necessarily help Mourinho solve this problem – half the squad is with their respective national teams.