Atletico defender calls out for Busquets’ handball: “We can’t do anything about it”

Atletico Madrid suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat at the hands of Barcelona this afternoon. The result was a major blow for the club in their bid to keep up with Real Madrid in the league table.

As the scoreline suggests, Atleti did provide a strong fight to Barcelona but ultimately came short. A turning point of the game came during the dying embers when Atleti’s appeals for a handball against Sergio Busquets were denied by the referee Sanchez Martinez.

The Barça veteran appeared to have handled the ball when going for an aerial duel. Atletico Madrid cried for a possible penalty, but the referee denied the calls.

Shortly after the game, Atleti defender Jose Maria Gimenez addressed the incident, suggesting that he cannot do anything about the decision.

“Busquets’ handball? The other day against Almería, the offside saved me, but this time they understood that it wasn’t a penalty. We can’t do anything about it, and we have to keep doing our thing, keep competing, and let the people who have to act, act accordingly,” he said (h/t Atletico Universe).

While Gimenez was careful not to mention Barcelona’s alleged involvement in the Negreira scandal, the referee’s decision has irked a lot of the Atletico Madrid fans, who have been calling out Sanchez, alleging that he was trained by Enrique Negreira.

Nevertheless, Atletico Madrid will look to move on from the tie. With eight matches still to be played, Los Rojiblancos have an excellent chance of catching up to their cross-town rivals, in the race to finish second in the league table.

Atleti’s next game will be against RCD Mallorca, at the Wanda Metropolitano on Wednesday.