Koeman accuses VAR of bias against Barcelona after El Clasico defeat

Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman questioned the integrity of video assistant referees, using a key incident from Saturday's El Clasico to argue they're biased against his club.

Koeman was incensed with the decision to award Real Madrid a penalty for a tug of the shirt in the area. Barcelona defender Clement Lenglet grabbed hold of Sergio Ramos' jersey midway through the second half, and the Madrid captain buried the spot-kick en route to a 3-1 victory.

"I don't understand VAR, I think it is only used to make decisions against Barca," Koeman told reporters post-match, according to Reuters. "You always get shirt tugs like that in the area, and I think Ramos makes a foul on Lenglet first. There's a tug of the shirt, but not enough to make him fall behind as he did."

"For me, it's not a penalty," he added.

Ramos said the penalty against Lenglent was "clear as daylight," and that "it's unfair to criticize a referee for a decision as clear as that."

Barcelona appealed for a penalty of their own when the ball hit Madrid defender Raphael Varane in the arm later in the second half. However, further replays showed his arm was tucked inside and not in an unnatural position.

Koeman also complained about the state of refereeing following last week's 1-0 loss to Getafe, saying, "I don't know what we have VAR for." The Dutchman protested after Getafe's Allan Nyom swung his arm into Lionel Messi's face in the first half of the contest.

Barcelona currently sit 12th in the La Liga table with seven points from five matches.