Xavi Hernandez Accuses Referees Of Thwarting Barcelona Opportunities In The Champions League

Barcelona players looked disappointed and sad to be knocked out in the Champions League (X/@FCBarcelona)

JAKARTA - Barcelona failed to advance to the semifinals of the Champions League after losing 4-1 against Paris Saint-Germain in the second match of the quarter-finals. Coach Xavi Hernandez accused referee Istvan Kovacs of thwarting Barca's move.

Xavi highlighted the poor referee's performance. Kovacs' decision to give Ronald Araujo a red card for his violations in the first half immediately affected Barca's performance.

Moreover, the referee then expelled himself for protesting too loudly. Xavi was declared inappropriate in words so that Kovacs issued a red card for the coach.

"The referee's performance is very bad. I told him that his performance was like a disaster," said Xavi.

"I really don't like to mention the referee. But what he decided on had an impact on the match. So I have to say it again," he said.

In the match which was held at home at the Stadio Olimpico Lluis Companys, Wednesday, April 17, 224 in the morning WIB, Barca actually appeared confidently. The 3-2 victory in the first match became the capital of the Blaugrana.

Barca are increasingly confident that they will qualify for the semifinals after winning through Raphinha. This Brazil forward is indeed a scourge for PSG.

In the first duel, he broke into Gianluigi Donnarumma's goal twice. This is also the 600th goal in the Champions League match.

Hanya, situasi berubah setelah Araujo dikartu merah karena melakukan pelanggaran terhadap Bradley Barcola.

After Araujo's expulsion, PSG managed to control the game. The French Ligue 1 team finally broke the deadlock through Ousmane Dembele. The former Barca forward scored in the 40th minute.

PSG took the lead after Vitinha broke into the host's goal in the second half. In a 2-1 position behind, Xavi was even shown a red card so that the team was not accompanied by a head coach.

The goal and Xavi's expulsion had a psychological impact on Barca players. They were under mental pressure and finally conceded again from Kylian Mbappe's penalty.

Defender Joao Cancelo committed a foul on Dembele in the penalty box in the 61st minute. The referee also pointed to the spot and Mbappe completed the execution.

Furthermore, Mbappe added a goal so that the score changed 4-1 for PSG. They also qualified for the semifinals after winning on aggregate 6-4.

"We are very disappointed and angry because the red card [Araujo] is a decisive factor in this match. When playing with 11 people, we are in a good position. We play well and master the game," said Xavi.

"In my opinion, the referee issued a red card too quickly. It is unfortunate that our achievements this season have been thwarted by unnecessary red cards," he said.

The failure in the Champions League put Barca at risk without a title this season. Because in the La Liga Spanish competition, Barca are still in second place under Real Madrid. They are eight points adrift of Madrid.