Real Madrid have shown themsevles to be bad losers after they slammed Danish referee Kim Moller Nielsen, blaming him for their Champions League exit at the hands of Bayern Munich last night. The defending champions lost 2-1 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate, relinquishing their chance of taking on Valencia in a repeat of last year's final. Real defender Ivan Helguera blasted Nielsen in the Spanish newspaper Marca this morning, saying: "Nobody wanted another all-Spanish final except the Spanish. They sat back but we were not very efficient and they beat us with clear help from the referee."
Helguera insisted his team should have been awarded a penalty with the scoreline at 1-1. "The penalty on Guti would have meant that we could have gone 1-2 up and after that it could have been a different game," he said.
Helguera's team-mate, goalkeeper Iker Casillas, was also quick to criticise the match official. "We should not think about it too much, but the referee has not helped us. I do not agree with the referee, because he gave fouls on the outfield that he did not give in the penalty areas. The penalty on Guti, I saw it from where I was, was blatant," he added. (PA)
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
