Pedri rages against refereeing decisions after Barcelona loss: “They clearly stepped on him”

Pedri was given the opportunity to captain Barcelona, but unfortunately, it didn’t result in a positive outcome. 

With Marc-Andre ter Stegen out due to injury and Frenkie de Jong and Ronald Araujo also unavailable, the captain’s armband was passed down to Pedri for the match against Osasuna. 

Raphinha, who had worn the armband in a previous game, remained on the bench against Osasuna and despite Pedri’s leadership, the game ended in a 4-2 defeat for Barcelona.

Speaking after the match, Pedri acknowledged that the team didn’t start well, and by the time they found their footing in the second half, it was too late. 

Despite playing with more intensity after the break and creating more chances, Osasuna’s counter-attacks proved too much for Barcelona to handle.

“We weren’t good in the first half, we didn’t start the game well and the second goal penalised us. In the second half, we went out to play more, we deserved more, but they hurt us on the counterattack,” said the captain as quoted by Mundo Deportivo.

Rotation good or bad?

Barcelona lost to Osasuna under Pedri’s captaincy. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

Pedri made it clear that injuries and squad rotations were not to blame for the loss. He admitted that rotations are a normal part of the game, especially with the packed schedule, and that the team should have been mentally prepared for the challenge. 

“It’s normal to have rotations, there are a lot of games and you have to do them to be in good shape. Rotations are no excuse, we had to go out mentally prepared,” he explained.

However, Pedri expressed frustration over some of the referee’s decisions during the game. The Madrid referee, Guillermo Cuadra Fernandez, who is part of the Balearic Committee, made calls that Pedri disagreed with. 

He pointed out a clear foul on Pau Victor and a penalty on Lamine Yamal that were not given. Pedri compared the situation to a previous match against Rayo Vallecano, where Barcelona had a goal ruled out for a minor infringement. 

Despite these frustrations, Pedri refused to use them as an excuse for the loss, maintaining that the team needed to improve regardless.

“The 2-0 at half-time penalised us.  It was a very clear foul (on Pau Victor) and there’s also a very clear penalty on Lamine Yamal. It is clear that they stepped on him (Victor).

“We had a goal taken away from us against Rayo for a minor stamp. I don’t understand why it’s not called here, but if he saw it that way it’s no excuse either,” he noted.