“I’m tired of this victimhood, of always crying” - Real Madrid star hits back at Simeone calling it unfair to disallow Julian Alvarez’s penalty
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has responded to Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone's claims regarding Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty in their UEFA Champions League clash this week (March 12).
After beating Atletico 2-1 in the first leg at the Bernabeu, Los Blancos traveled to the Metropolitano to face them in the second leg. Real Madrid's aggregate lead was undone courtesy of Conor Gallagher's strike in the first 30 seconds of the fixture.
Neither side could find the back of the net until extra time as the match went on to penalties. Real Madrid won 4-2 on penalties as Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham, Federico Valverde, and Antonio Rudiger converted their spot-kicks.
Julian Alvarez's penalty sparked controversy as it was disallowed after his strike was deemed a double touch, with the ball grazing his pivot leg. The official's decision did not sit well with Simeone, who told a press conference after the match (via ESPN):
"I've just seen the images, the referee says Julián touches the ball with his supporting leg, but the ball doesn't move."
"When Julián kicks [the penalty], the ball doesn't even move a bit. I imagine that they called the VAR and saw that he touched it. I want to believe that they'll have seen that he touched it," he added.
Real Madrid shot-stopper Courtois has hit back at the Spanish manager's comments. He said (via Madrid Xtra):
"Simeone's words that it was unfair to disallow Julián Álvarez's penalty? I think UEFA sees it clearly. I'm tired of this victimhood, of always crying about things like this."
Madrid will next face Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-finals next month (April 8).
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti offers thoughts on Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti offered his two cents on Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty as well after the game. He believes VAR made the right decision, stating that the ball came into contact with Alvarez's left foot.
The former Chelsea manager said (via ESPN):
"It looks to me like Julian Alvarez touches it with his left foot. [Penalties] are a lottery, heads or tails. It came up heads today. Atletico go out with their heads high."
Ancelotti then revealed that he was debating between Endrick and Antonio Rudiger to take the final penalty kick, and his decision paid off as the German center-back scored the decisive goal.
He said:
"We had doubts between Endrick and Rüdiger. I saw Endrick's face, and I thought 'better Rüdiger'!"
Madrid are currently second in the LaLiga table, level on points with league leaders Barcelona. The Blaugrana, however, have a game in hand over Los Blancos.
