Arda Güler's elbow ignored by VAR as Real Madrid beats Seville 4-1 amid controversy

Real Madrid dominated FC Seville 4-1 in La Liga matchday 9, but José Mourinho’s side’s victory is immediately eclipsed by a major refereeing controversy that erupts a week before the Clásico at Camp Nou.

Everything hinges on the 23rd minute. Real Madrid midfielder Arda Güler throws an elbow at Seville’s Peque. Neither the on-field referee nor VAR intervene. Seven minutes later, it is Güler himself who opens the scoring. Kylian Mbappé, who scored twice, and Yan Diomandé complete the scoreline, making the result one-sided despite a much tighter reality on the pitch.

At his post-match press conference, Seville manager Luis García Plaza made no attempt to hide his anger. “A match is eleven against eleven, but we were denied the chance to play this match at eleven against ten,” he said. The coach went further on the lack of video intervention: “Why didn’t VAR step in? Perhaps because they would have been nine points behind before the Clásico if we had won.”

The Catalan press seized on the opening. Mundo Deportivo evokes the “chronicle of an announced robbery” and denounces a Real Madrid strategy of constant pressure on the refereeing body. Sport points to “circumstantial collusion,” arguing that referees, usually presented as adversaries of Real Madrid, transform into “precious allies” at the decisive moment. L’Esportiu for its part lashes out at video assistance described as “inexplicably distant and blurry.”

The controversy unfolds in an already tense context: supporters brandish banners hostile to Javier Tebas, and the Negreira affair continues to fuel tensions between the two clubs. Before meeting at Camp Nou, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have a European appointment to honour: the Madrilenes host RB Leipzig in the Ligue des Champions on Wednesday, while the Catalans face Paris Saint-Germain.