“I have never disrespected a referee”- Carlo Ancelotti says following Real Madrid’s draw against Girona

Real Madrid manager, Carlo Ancelotti has denied disrespecting La Liga referees following Real Madrid’s Saturday draw against Girona.

In the 1-1 draw, the Italian expressed his anger with the referee’s decision to award Girona a penalty for a handball by Marco Asensio. He went on to say that the winger did not touch the ball with his hand and that the referees “invented it”. The Spanish FA is now looking into Ancelotti’s comments, although he claims that they were misread and that he did not mean to disrespect the referee.

Carlo Ancelotti’s comment

During a press conference, Ancelotti said:  “They have made a formal complaint about me for what I have said. An invented penalty [rigore inventato] in Italy means that they have awarded a penalty that was not a penalty.

”Bad faith and accusing a referee [of conspiracy] are not present here. I have never disrespected a referee, I only said what everyone thinks. For me, it wasn’t a penalty because of what they explained to us at the beginning of the season. It’s enough to say that it’s a mistake. Nobody is infallible.”

If the Spanish FA’s competition committee decides to take disciplinary action, Ancelotti faces a four-game suspension. Valencia left-back Jose Gaya received a four-game suspension after being found guilty of grumbling about referees last season.

Carlo Ancelotti will be on the bench when Real Madrid takes on Celtic in the UEFA Champions League at the Santiago Bernabeu.