Where is the VAR? The referees spare a red card for Barreiro in the Benfica-Barça match

FC Barcelona held on to a draw against Benfica in a first half where Hansi Flick's team was clearly harmed by the officiating. In addition to the possible foul prior to the expulsion of Pau Cubarsí in the 22nd minute, the main referee Felix Zwayer spared a very clear red card for Luxembourg's Leandro Barreiro just before halftime.

The midfielder arrived late to a 50-50 ball, stamping his studs on the right leg of Iñigo Martínez, who managed to slide in time to win the challenge. The German official resolved the stomp with a yellow card, a decision that was supported by the VAR, also German, Bastian Dankert. As a result, Benfica maintained their numerical advantage for the second half, a key factor in balancing a match where the Catalans were clear dominators in the first 20 minutes.

Iñigo Martínez ended up booked after Barreiro's stomp

To make matters worse, Zwayer booked Iñigo for protesting, even though the Basque player was the one affected by Barreiro's harsh tackle. The '5' Catalan angrily threw his shin guard to the ground upon seeing that the referees dismissed even reviewing the tackle for the possibility of overturning the yellow card to a red. The same happened with Ronald Araujo, who also protested the referee's decision and thus ended the first half cautioned.

The '4', now as captain, came on for Dani Olmo after Cubarsí's expulsion. In the end, the officials fulfilled their duty: to try to influence a tie against a Barça condemned to play with ten from the 22nd minute, as well as the entire second half with both of their center-backs booked. For Benfica, António Silva was also booked before halftime for cutting a counterattack with a foul on Alejandro Balde.