Atlético Madrid were reduced to ten men in their important La Liga clash with Barcelona at the Camp Nou after Diego Costa received a straight red.
Ahead of kick-off, the reigning Spanish champions were eight points clear at the top of the table ahead of second-placed Atlético.
However, Diego Simeone's men would have no easy task against Barça following Costa's complete meltdown towards referee Jesús Gil Manzano.
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The former Chelsea star believed that he was fouled in the 28th minute and made his feelings completely clear towards the referee.
However, the 30-year-old Atlético striker ended up marching down the tunnel after he was shown a straight red from Manzano.
Check it out below.
While there is no confirmation of what Costa exactly said at the time of this writing, there are rumblings that the Spain international took aim at the referee's mother.
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Ernesto Valverde's men moved 11 points clear at the top of the table after Luis Suárez opened the scoring with a superb strike from outside of the box and Lionel Messi sealed a 2-0 win with a delightful finish past Jan Oblak.
A quick update: since this story was published, Manzano has confirmed what Costa said in his match report.
"In the 28th minute the player Diego Da Silva Costa was sent off for the following motive: he shouted loudly at me the following words: 'I S**T ON YOUR W***E MOTHER, I SHIT ON YOUR W***E MOTHER,'" Reuters' Richard Martin wrote on Twitter.
Simeone has also spoken about the incident after the match, saying that the red card would be the right decision if Costa did insult the referee. However, the Atlético head coach did question the rules in these types of situations.
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"In 11 games we've had seven red cards, so we must be doing something wrong," he said (via Marca).
"I asked the referee and he told me something that Costa tells me he hasn't said. Other players have said things and aren't sent off, but that doesn't justify Diego.
"If the referee interprets there was an insult, then it's a justified red card. But it's not always the same, it's not always the same...
"They sent off [Fernando] Torres [in 2015/16], the sent off Torres... an icon! After that, anyone can be sent off."
Will Barcelona retain the league title this season?
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Let us know in the comments.
This story has since been amended to include the update from Manzano's report and quotes from Diego Simeone. The rest of the story remains unchanged.
Topics: Football News, Football, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Diego Costa, Ernesto Valverde, La Liga, Barca, Camp Nou, Diego Simeone
