Real Madrid furious over Lee Kang-in tackle after derby defeat

Real Madrid expressed outrage over a dangerous tackle by Lee Kang-in, 25.

Atletico Madrid claimed a narrow 2-1 victory over Real Madrid on Sunday (local time) in a La Liga Round 7 home match at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano in Madrid, Spain, in the 2026-27 season.

Both goals came in the second half, but a tackle by Lee in the closing minutes of the first half has stirred controversy.

In the 44th minute, Lee attempted a tackle on Real midfielder Federico Valverde's ankle while trying to stop a counterattack — a challenge many considered reckless.

Lee was not shown a yellow card.

Real Madrid responded by posting a screenshot of the incident on the club's official SNS account, writing that "the worst refereeing, riddled with errors, decided the outcome of the derby."

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho held up a printed image of the incident at his post-match news conference and lashed out. "Everything about this match is right here — we can skip the press conference," he said. "Those were two clear red cards. I can only imagine what would have happened if we had played 11 against nine for 50 minutes. I don't understand why a 41-year-old referee with no international experience — Ortiz Arias — was assigned to this match."

Lee's SNS accounts were flooded with abusive comments from angry Real Madrid fans.

Atletico manager Diego Simeone said, "Whether it's Mourinho, Hansi Flick — the Barcelona manager — Pellegrini, the Real Betis manager, or myself, we all need to be careful with what we say. None of us should cross the line of respect."

Meanwhile, amid the war of words off the pitch, Lee played 89 minutes and was central to the 2-1 win. He led the attack with threatening shots and crosses and played a key role in setting up the second goal in the 59th minute.