Barcelona coach fuels referee war with “lack of respect” Bellingham comment

Ahead of their game in LaLiga against Rayo Vallecano, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick spoke to the media.

He addressed the upcoming match and also spoke about the recent controversy surrounding Real Madrid and Jude Bellingham, who was controversially sent off in the game against CA Osasuna after some harsh words to the referee.

On the match against Rayo: “We often don’t focus on the league table. In the end, we do check it, but there’s still a long season ahead. Our goal is to maintain the performance we’ve shown this year. The players enjoy training, and that’s very important. Rayo is doing an extraordinary job—they’re a brave team that attacks, presses high, and has achieved great results at home. They’re performing very well.”

SEE ALSO: Bellingham could face 12-game ban

Team mentality: “I feel the team is eager to demonstrate how good it is, especially in terms of mentality. For a coach, it’s incredible to see players who love training and improving. Their confidence—both in training and matches—reflects this mindset. This is the moment for us to push forward.”

Real Madrid and Atlético slip-ups: “I’m aware of everything that’s happening, of course. But what truly matters is staying focused on ourselves—that’s the best approach. It’s important for Madrid to lead, obviously. What happened helps, but we still have to play 90 minutes and secure the win.”

Player list submission: “This has never happened to me before. We had to submit the player list to LaLiga 90 minutes before the match, and I didn’t know it was mandatory. We’ll figure out how to handle it tomorrow.”

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Difference Between ‘F*ck Off' and ‘F*ck You': “Both are disrespectful in any situation. That’s my view, but it’s not up to me to decide. I always tell my players not to waste energy arguing with the referee. We have a captain on the field who is authorized to speak to the referee, and we must accept that. In handball, when the referee blows the whistle, the ball is dropped, and you defend. We can learn a lot from that approach.”

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