Flick says Barca won't hide behind 'excuses' amid Real Madrid ref fury

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said Wednesday his team would not hide behind "excuses" after rivals Real Madrid attacked Spanish refereeing following a surprise La Liga defeat.

Los Blancos were beaten 1-0 at relegation-battling Espanyol on Saturday and subsequently sent a furious letter to the Spanish football federation blasting the country's refereeing as "rigged" and "completely discredited".

Madrid were angry after Espanyol defender Carlos Romero avoided a red card for hacking down striker Kylian Mbappe and went on to score the winning goal.

"This (letter) is their choice, they do it like this, it's not our way -- I said no excuses and we will do it like that," Flick told a news conference ahead of Barcelona's Copa del Rey quarter-final at Valencia on Thursday.

"Every club has some reasons to say something. We're humans, it's normal in life, everyone makes mistakes.

"The referees have tough jobs. we have to take care of them, it's not easy this situation... when I arrived I said no excuses, no complaining and no blaming, I don't like that."

Real Madrid remain top of La Liga by one point ahead of city rivals Atletico Madrid, whom they host on Saturday in the top flight.

Carlo Ancelotti's side are in action on Wednesday at Leganes in the Copa del Rey, while Atletico thrashed Getafe 5-0 on Tuesday to reach the semi-finals.

Record 31-time Spanish cup winners Barcelona thrashed Valencia 7-1 in La Liga in January but Flick said it would be harder going at Mestalla.

"The atmosphere (previously there) was unbelievable, and they press well, and it was not easy to win there, and I think it will be the same tomorrow," added Flick.

"It's a cup match and you cannot win a trophy tomorrow but you can lose one, and this we don't want to do."