‘They’re indignant, angry’ – Leganes manager reacts to controversial RMA loss

Leganes manager Borja Jimenez was diplomatic about the officiating during their 3-2 defeat to Real Madrid on Saturday night, with the away side furious about several decisions that went against them. In the lead up to the match, Jimenez had noted that the three big teams cannot complain about referees, despite Real Madrid’s campaign to present themselves as the primary victim of officiating.

Los Pepineros were frustrated by a penalty decision against them, but then saw two challenges from Raul Asencio and Jude Bellingham go unpunished in the second half. The free-kick from which Kylian Mbappe grabbed the winner was also contested by the away side. Jimenez tried to lower the tone of Leganes’ complaints after the game though.

“I’m not going to complain again today. Let’s see if we get lucky with the draws. I said it on Friday, and I’ll say it again and again: those of us at the bottom or at the top have little right to complain. I have a lot of trust in the refereeing system, but we’ve had bad luck. I hope the club does something about it,” he said in the press room to MD.

“I’m talking about following the dynamic of all the clubs, who are speaking out and following the same line. That’s positive for us.”

As per Diario AS, Leganes have no plans to elevate their complaints. The increasingly notorious Pablo Gonzalez Fuertes was at the eye of the storm. Leganes’ social media account was much less diplomatic, tweeting out ‘what’ after Real Madrid’s penalty award. They also put out a picture of Asencio’s challenge, and finished the night by saying ‘And on top of it all, they’re also robbing us of an hour’, referencing the fact the clocks went forward in Spain overnight.

“I don’t think it’s a lack of ability, far from it. I was lucky enough to speak with him- referee Gonzalez Fuertes – before the match started. He didn’t have his best day, as could happen to us. He’ll be self-critical, but I have the utmost respect for him. We’ve had bad luck, again.”

However Jimenez did not hide that his players were irate about the matter.

“They’re very angry because we saw the actions and they’re indignant, angry; I’ve tried to make them appreciate what they did to make the team play well here. We had the 2-3 chance as soon as we conceded. Madrid dominated, they had us close to the penalty area, but we knew we had to be like that. They were very upset by the circumstances. We’re leaving with a bad feeling because we deserved to avoid defeat here.”

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti noted that he decisions that went against Leganes were grey areas, and that they also had some right to complain. On the other hand Andriy Lunin told the press that a better defensive performance from his side would have prevented any controversy. Leganes remain in the relegation zone, level on points with Alaves, while Real Madrid go level with Barcelona at the top of the table.