FC Barcelona are annoyed with VAR for denying them a penalty during the final minutes of the game against Real Sociedad and have decided to file a complaint to the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF). Barcelona center-back Gerard Pique was brought down inside the penalty box in injury time by La Real defender Diego Llorente but the referee decided to ignore Barca’s penalty claim and told them to get on with the game. Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu was unimpressed with this decision as Real Sociedad were given a penalty for a similar incident in the first half. La Liga 2019-20: Barcelona Pegged Back 2-2 by Real Sociedad After Marc-Andre ter Stegen Error, Real Madrid Get the Chance to Go Top of the Table.

Bartomeu felt that both penalty calls should have been looked at by VAR and was annoyed with the referee’s decision at San Sebastian and immediately contacted RFEF president Luis Rubiales after the game. According to ESPN, the Barcelona president will now proceed to file a formal complaint against VAR to the Spanish FA on Sunday. It is also reported that he will ask for a clarification of the decision and an explanation of how the technology is being applied in Spain while pointing out that Barce were among the ones who supported VAR’s introduction in La Liga. Along with the president, many other Barca players were left irritated with the denied penalty and have expressed their displeasure. Sergio Busquets was one of the players who spoke to the press after the game and questioned the decision. 'If you set the bar so low for the first penalty, you have to give so many more penalties' he said on the controversial penalty incident.

This draw could see Barca lose the top spot if Real Madrid manage to win their game against Valencia, late on Sunday night. Barcelona and Real Madrid will meet each other in the first El Clasico of the season on Wednesday as it was rescheduled from October to December after the political unrest in Catalonia.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 15, 2019 04:57 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).