Referee Hil Mansano, 40, is expected to face disciplinary action for his role in the match-fixing blunder.
Real Madrid drew 2-2 with Valencia CF in the 27th round of the 2023-2024 La Liga season at the Estadio de Mestalla in Valencia, Spain, on Wednesday (March 3).
It was an unfair draw for Real Madrid. A late theater goal was disallowed by referee Mansano. Real Madrid went behind in the 27th and 30th minutes of the first half, but Vinicius Junior’s brace evened the score, and Jude Bellingham found the back of the net in stoppage time from a Brahim Diaz cross.
Surprisingly, referee Mansano didn’t recognize the goal as a goal, blowing his whistle to end the game as soon as Dias sent in the cross.
The time was around 8:40 of second-half stoppage time, seven minutes after the allotted extra time. However, referee Mansano used two minutes of video assistant referee (VAR) time. Furthermore, the referee’s decision to blow the final whistle was controversial, as he ended the game just as the cross was going up.
The Real Madrid players were furious that they had been robbed of victory, and they all ran to referee Mansano to protest, but the decision was not overturned. The game ended in a 2-2 draw.
Bellingham even received a direct red card. He reportedly protested the goal by shouting f**k. Elsewhere, Aurélien Chouameni broke a camera and Antonio Rudiger smashed an interfew panel to lose minutes.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti was left stunned. “I don’t know what to say…there’s not much to say. It’s unprecedented,” he said, adding, “I’m not happy with Bellingham’s sending off either. He said ‘f**k goal’. He didn’t insult referee Mansano. We’ll see what the 안전놀이터 referee says. The players are angry.”
Referee Mansano will not escape discipline. “Mansano’s punishment has been exposed. There is no forgiveness for what happened in Valencia, and he will face harsh sanctions for his disastrous officiating at the Mestalla,” said Defensa Central.
“Real Madrid has suffered serious damage, and there is still anger. It will take a long time to forget what Mansano has done,” adding, “The referees’ technical committee has labeled his mistake as ‘very serious’. No one understands the call. Mansano will be banned from refereeing for some time.”
Bellingham’s further discipline is also a concern. He faces a two- to three-game suspension at this point. “Real Madrid are planning to appeal to allow Bellingham to play in the upcoming Celta Vigo game,” says Defensa Central. However, there is not much hope that it will be accepted.”
