As FC Barcelona have often experienced, refereeing calls in football can be very defining. However, it must also be remembered that officiating the beautiful game is arguably one of the hardest jobs one can do. Barcelona, having received many calls both in favor of and against them, would not argue against this fact either.
Ultimately, there will always be those on the winning side and the losing side of a decision made by an official. Not always will it go in one direction, and nor does it always go against a certain direction. However, not everyone seems to agree with this, especially not the Osasuna players who just recently lost to FC Barcelona.
Following the latest semi-final clash between Barcelona and CA Osasuna, there were many whispers about a ‘foul’ that led to Barça’s opening goal. However, there were also those from the Osasuna team who could not keep it to just a whisper, as highlighted by SPORT.
The first one to speak up was Osasuna captain and defender, David Garcia. According to him, there seems to be a pattern as to which way the officials tend to favor their decisions:
“You’ve all seen it. The foul on Arnaiz is very evident, very clear to me. On the other side, it is called. Coincidentally or not, it always leans towards the same side, and I don’t want to be populist, but… Three minutes after the goal, he called a similar foul in favor of Barça.”
However, Garcia was not the only Osasuna player who decided to make public remarks such as this. In fact, Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera decided to be even more blunt and make quite the outrageous claim: “The Supercup is made for Barcelona and Real Madrid to play.”
While these comments will surely come as a bit shocking to the professionals involved both in their rival teams and the match officials, there is also an irony to them. SPORT even points out that it is actually Osasuna, and even Atletico Madrid, who are being done a favor.
Had it not been for the latest Spanish Super Cup format, it is the two losers from the semi-finals who would normally not have been there. On the other hand, both FC Barcelona and Real Madrid enter this competition as champions of La Liga and the Copa Del Ray, respectively.
