Gerard Pique furiously confronts referee following Barcelona’s defeat to Real Madrid

A furious Gerard Pique confronted La Liga referee Jesus Gil Manzano following Barcelona's El Clasico defeat on Saturday.

Barcelona suffered their first defeat of the year as they fell to a 2-1 loss to Real Madrid at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano on Saturday.

The hosts drew first blood when Karim Benzema neatly tucked home Lucas Vasquez’s low cross in the 13th minute.

They quickly doubled their lead with Toni Kroos’ firing home a deflected free-kick just before the half-hour mark.

El Classico Results since the return of Zinedine ZidaneBarcelona 0-0 Real MadridReal Madrid 2-0 BarcelonaBarcelona 1-3 Real MadridReal Madrid 2-1 Barcelona3W - 1D - 0L pic.twitter.com/1SAQhcQV2d

— Martial🇬🇭🇳🇬 (@adawen14) April 11, 2021

Barcelona pulled one back in the 60th minute through Oscar Mingueza, but the hosts held on to see out the win.

Following the game, Gerard Pique was left frustrated by the four-minute added time given the referee took a lengthy break to fix his equipment.

Pique, who was unable to take part in the El Clasico clash through injury, raced to referee Gil Manzano to vent his frustrations.

The pitch-side microphones picked up Pique saying: "Let me speak, let me speak, you gave us a little extra time, and you've been off the field for a long time”. (Via Goal)

Pique could also have been angered by the referee’s decision to overlook a potential Barcelona penalty in the final 10 minutes of the game.

As Barcelona mounted pressure in a bid to grab an equalizer, Martin Braithwaite raced to a loose ball in the penalty area before he was felled by Real Madrid full-back Ferland Mendy.

However, the referee opted to overlook the penalty shout of the Barcelona players, who felt hard done by his decision.

Barcelona head coach Ronald Koeman left angered by the penalty decision

Real Madrid v FC Barcelona - La Liga Santander

Ronald Koeman made his anger known in a post-match interview following Barcelona’s defeat to Real Madrid.

The Dutchman claimed Barcelona deserved a penalty after Martin Braithwaite was hacked down in the box late in the game.

Speaking on the penalty decision, the Barcelona boss was quoted as saying by Goal:

"We're really angry about the situation with the penalty. That's not fair play. If you don't give the penalty — I don't understand that.

“I only ask the referees to get decisions right. It’s a penalty and only four minutes of stoppage time was given, despite the referee having [to stop for a period] because he had a problem with his headset.

“It’s a very clear penalty. And if it had been given it’s 2-2. It’s such a clear penalty. I don’t know why we have VAR in Spain."

We had the upper hand during the game and had the opportunities for a better result. Unlucky in the end with a wrong decision by the referee and VAR. #ForçaBarça pic.twitter.com/wIg22YvbL2

— Ronald Koeman (@RonaldKoeman) April 11, 2021

However, Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane gave his own perspective on the penalty decision, alongside the added time allocated at the end of the game.

“If the referee has not whistled, it is because there is no penalty. The extra time can be three, four, five or six minutes… He decides,” Zidane said.

Real Madrid have now moved ahead of Atletico Madrid into first place in the La Liga table while Barcelona have dropped to third.