BARCELONA
\nBarcelona coach Xavi Hernandez claimed the referee\u2019s decision to send Ronald Araujo off in their Champions League knock-out by Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday was \u201cunnecessary\u201d and ended the club\u2019s hopes.
\nAraujo was dismissed in the 29th minute for pulling down Bradley Barcola on the edge of the box with Barcelona leading 1-0 on the night and 4-2 on aggregate.
\nWith Barcelona down to 10 men, PSG battled back and triumphed 4-1 at Montjuic, progressing 6-4 on aggregate.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a shame that the work of a whole season ends here because of a refereeing decision,\u201d Xavi told Movistar.
\n\u201cThis dismissal is unnecessary.\u201d
\nXavi was sent off for a show of dissent on the sideline as Barcelona lost their heads in the second half and he criticised Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs.
\n\u201cThe referee was very bad, I told him, he didn\u2019t understand the game,\u201d said the coach.
\nAraujo\u2019s red card led Xavi to take off 16-year-old winger Lamine Yamal, who created Barcelona\u2019s opening goal for Raphinha, with Inigo Martinez coming on to fill the hole in defence.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re angry, the red card defines the tie,\u201d continued Xavi. \u201cWe were well organised, for me it\u2019s too much to give a red card, from there it\u2019s another tie.
\n\u201cWe had doubts about whether to take off Lamine, he was doing well \u2014 that moment completely defined the tie.\u201d
\nBarcelona are eight points behind Real Madrid in the La Liga title race and face Los Blancos on Sunday at the Santiago Bernabeu.
\n\u201cRight now, thinking about Sunday\u2019s game isn\u2019t the thing to do,\u201d said goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
\n\u201cWe have to rest, charge our batteries and try to feel good again, above all mentally.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BARCELONA Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez claimed the referee\u2019s decision to send Ronald Araujo off in their Champions League knock-out by Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday was \u201cunnecessary\u201d and ended the club\u2019s hopes. Araujo was dismissed in the 29th minute for pulling down Bradley Barcola on the edge of the box with Barcelona leading 1-0 on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-400908","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n