Barcelona's Frenkie de Jong shocked by VAR decision in defeat to Atletico

The captain admitted he was puzzled by an eight-minute VAR review that led to Pau Cubarsi's goal being disallowed for offside. De Jong appeared to mistake the decision as applying to Robert Lewandowski, who was onside when he touched Fermin López's shot.

"I saw the image later and it's clear there was no offside. The image shown on television as the offside call doesn't show any contact with the ball, and then you see the image where Fermin shoots and the defender is a meter behind Robert. I think it's very strange.

"He (the referee) can't do much, because he's also waiting. He doesn't have the image or the video. But VAR does. The image I saw, if it's not AI, which you don't realise anymore... If this is the photo, it's a scandal because it's very clear."

Eric Garcia, who scored an own goal and was later sent off, also voiced dissatisfaction with the refereeing.

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick did not hold back in his criticism, describing Spanish refereeing as "a mess."

He singled out the offside ruling against Cubarsi, the prolonged VAR process, and the decision to allow Giuliano Simeone to remain on the pitch despite contentious incidents.

In response, Barcelona announced plans to file a formal complaint with the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), seeking clarification and accountability regarding the officiating decisions.

The defeat leaves Barcelona with a daunting four-goal deficit ahead of the second leg, compounded by the frustration over what they view as inconsistent and unfair refereeing.