Mourinho Blasts Officials as Ten-Man Real Madrid Fall in Madrid Derby

Jose Mourinho was left fuming at refereeing decisions after his Real Madrid side lost 2-1 to Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano, despite praising his players' character in the aftermath.

Two flashpoints that shaped the derby

Mourinho felt Real Madrid should have had two Atletico players sent off earlier in the game for challenges on Jude Bellingham and Federico Valverde, decisions he argued would have changed the complexion of the match entirely.

Instead, it was Real who finished the game a man light. Dean Huijsen was dismissed in the 50th minute for a foul inside the box, and Alejandro Grimaldo converted the resulting penalty. Jonathan David doubled Atletico's advantage shortly after, sliding home a low cross to make it 2-0.

We can only imagine what fifty minutes of eleven against nine would have looked like.

A response, but not enough

Antonio Rudiger headed home from a Bernardo Silva free-kick to give Real hope, but Atletico held firm to secure the derby win.

• The result leaves Real Madrid six points behind leaders Barcelona in La Liga.
• Real have gone two seasons without a major trophy.
• Mourinho's return to the club was billed as a fresh start, but early results have been mixed.

With a player advantage for large parts of the second half, Atletico made the most of their moment — and left Mourinho with familiar complaints about the officials on one of Spanish football's biggest stages.