Bellingham slammed the ‘ridiculous’ red card as Madrid crashed out of the Champions League

Jude Bellingham has criticized the decision to send off teammate Eduardo Camavinga with a red card during Real Madrid’s Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich, describing it as a “joke” after the game.

Camavinga, who was introduced on the bench, was sent off in the 86th minute after receiving a second yellow card for kicking the ball and delaying a free-kick that fouled Harry Kane.

When Bellingham was passed by reporters after the game, he made a nervous comment, as did many of his teammates.

“It’s a joke,” he said. “It can’t be red”, he said.

Camavinga’s red card reverses the UCL

At the time of the announcement, the game was a draw, with both sides still in contention to advance to the semi-finals.

Reduced to 10 men, Madrid struggled to hold on as Bayern took over late on, scoring twice to win 6-4 and progress to the semi-finals.

The decision quickly became a major talking point, with several Madrid players reacting both on the pitch and after full time.

Real Madrid players left angry

Defender Antonio Rudiger commented on his frustration but avoided direct criticism. “I better not talk about the referee, did you see the red card?” he said.

Team captain Dani Carvajal was animated, confronting referee Slavko Vincic on the phone. Television footage showed Carvajal pointing at the officer and shouting: “Your fault.”

Arda Guler, who scored twice on the night, was later sent off after approaching the referee following the final whistle.

“It’s not the way it should have been. We’re very sorry. We’ll be back. Hello Madrid,” he wrote on social media.

Arbeloa says red card ‘ruined’ UCL game

Head coach Alvaro Arbeloa said the decision ended up being tied. “You can’t take a player out of something like that,” Arbeloa said. “No one understands how a player can be sent off because of that.

“I think the referee issued the card because he did not know that Camavinga had been booked, it was a repeated mistake.

“It ruined a game that was going really well. It was the end of the game.”

Bayern Munich players defend the referee’s call

From Bayern’s point of view, the decision was justified. Luis Diaz said the dismissal helped change the momentum late in the game.

“I think the referee was right to send him off. We wanted to kick quickly and he didn’t let the ball go,” said Díaz.

“Obviously the red card really encouraged us and we said ‘this has to be it’, it was.”

Kane also acknowledged the impact of that time. “Obviously getting sent off helped us a bit, but we had to take time at the end of the game, and we did that.”

UEFA is expected to review the referee’s report before deciding whether to take further action.

Bayern will now face Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-finals, with a possible final place against Arsenal or Atletico Madrid on the cards.