The 0–4 defeat to Atlético Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi‑final hurt on the scoreboard, but inside Barcelona’s dressing room frustration focused heavily on a disallowed goal by Pau Cubarsi.
Cubarsi’s strike was wiped out following a lengthy VAR check that lasted more than six minutes. On‑field referee Juan Martínez Munuera waited for confirmation from VAR official Pablo González Fueres, who had to resort to manual offside lines because the semi‑automatic offside system was not available.
The decision quickly became a main talking point after the match, especially among Barcelona players. Midfielder Frenkie de Jong was among the most outspoken: speaking to international media in the mixed zone, he said he had examined the images and disagreed with the final call, arguing that broadcast angles do not show contact with the ball and that a defender appears a metre behind Rober at the moment Fermin shoots.
De Jong stressed that the on‑pitch referee cannot do much in such situations because he does not have access to the same video material as VAR, and he pointed to the VAR procedure and the images being used as the underlying problem — if the single photo used was decisive, he described that as scandalous given how clear it looked to him.
