Mourinho returns to his old self: referee rant and list of grievances after Madrid derby

José Mourinho brought back his most combative version at the Metropolitano. After Real Madrid's derby defeat, the Portuguese coach stopped holding back and launched a frontal attack on referee Ortiz Arias, VAR and the Technical Committee of Referees. His anger was not limited to what happened against Atlético: he had been taking notes for weeks and recited from memory a list of decisions that, in his view, have particularly favoured Atlético and Barcelona in the opening stretch of the season.

• Mourinho exploded after Real Madrid's derby defeat at the Metropolitano.
• He hit out at Ortiz Arias, VAR and the Technical Committee of Referees.
• He recited a list of grievances accumulated over recent weeks.
• He pointed to decisions that have benefited Atlético and Barcelona.
• His attitude recalled the Mourinho from his first spell at Real Madrid.

The derby that ended Mourinho's restraint

During the first weeks of the season, the Portuguese hinted several times at recovering his most fiery rhetoric, but he always ended up tapping the brakes. Just a few days earlier he left a half-finished sentence in a press conference: "You don't ask me about the penalties? Strange, isn't it?". At the Metropolitano there was no brake left. The defeat, Huijsen's sending off and several challenges on Bellingham and Valverde that did not end in red cards blew his restraint to pieces.

The coach faced the media with the tone that made him famous during his first spell in Madrid. That manager who turned press conferences into another playing field and showed up with prepared papers to list every refereeing decision. His December 2010 appearance after a Real Madrid-Sevilla match was especially memorable, when he produced a sheet detailing 13 alleged mistakes by Clos Gómez. More than fifteen years later he did not need to pull out any paper: he recited the list from memory.

Mourinho's list of grievances against Atlético and Barcelona

"There are things that have been seen in recent weeks...", Mou began before listing every episode. "Here, in this stadium, the disallowed goal against Osasuna is laughable; the penalty in San Sebastián is laughable; Barcelona's penalty is laughable; the non-dismissal against Athletic Bilbao with this gentleman who has been very friendly —he pointed backwards, referring to Ortiz Arias—, with a boy who is a great player... It's all accumulated things".

The disallowed Osasuna goal at the Metropolitano

The first episode highlighted by Mourinho came in the Atlético-Osasuna match played at the home of the rojiblancos. With the score at 1-0, Arguibide scored what looked like the equaliser after a ball was swung into the box. Torró leaped with Le Normand, managed to glance the ball on, and it eventually reached the Osasuna full-back, who scored with a shot across goal. The referee disallowed the goal after interpreting a foul by Torró on Le Normand in the aerial challenge. Osasuna protested furiously, arguing it was a normal tussle for the ball. Atlético ended up winning 4-0, but for the Portuguese coach that action was the first chapter in a series of decisions favouring the rojiblanco side.

The penalty at Anoeta and Lamine Yamal's fall

The second incident took place in San Sebastián, where Atlético were awarded a penalty for a handball inside Real Sociedad's area. The controversy arose because the ball arrived via a deflection and from very close range, which opened the debate over whether the defender could really have avoided the contact. The referee pointed to the spot and VAR upheld the decision. For Mourinho it was another example of a standard that is not always applied the same way, hence his verdict: "The penalty in San Sebastián is laughable".

He also included in his list the penalty awarded to Barcelona for a fall by Lamine Yamal in the box during the match against Levante, played in Valencia. The Barça forward fell after contact with a defender and the referee decided there was an infringement. The spot kick sparked numerous protests over how minimal the contact was.

Lamine Yamal's non-dismissal against Athletic

The Portuguese also did not forget what happened in the Barcelona-Athletic match. Lamine Yamal lost the ball and, while trying to win it back, ended up stamping on Laporte. Ortiz Arias called the foul but showed no card to the Barcelona player. The controversy grew with the referee's camera footage, in which the official himself could be heard acknowledging amid the protests that Lamine had delivered "a stamp you wouldn't believe". Despite admitting the severity of the contact, he did not book him. Had he been cautioned, Lamine would have been sent off, as he later received another yellow card. That performance infuriated Real Madrid, also because of the referee's relaxed tone with some Barça players.

The Osorio elbow on Huijsen that completes the story

Mourinho added to all this what happened in Real Madrid-Elche. Osorio threw an elbow at Huijsen in an off-the-ball incident that was not punished with a red card. The Elche player stayed on the pitch and went on to score his team's goal. One more episode that, in the eyes of the Madrid coach, paints a pattern of decisions that are not applied with the same yardstick.

The return of the trench-warfare Mourinho

Here, in this stadium, the disallowed goal against Osasuna is laughable; the penalty in San Sebastián is laughable; Barcelona's penalty is laughable.

For several weeks Mourinho wanted to project a calmer image. He warned, hinted and left sentences half-finished, but avoided declaring war. The derby changed the scenario completely. The defeat, Huijsen's dismissal and the challenges on Bellingham and Valverde that did not end in red cards exhausted his patience. The Mourinho of the trenches is back, and he has returned by reciting from memory every decision he considers damaging to his team.

Frequently asked questions about Mourinho's outburst