Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane responds to Barcelona manager's Ronald Koeman controversial comments

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has admitted that he is annoyed after Barcelona boss' Ronald Koeman's suggestion that referees favour Real Madrid.

Real Madrid faced Eibar on Monday, a game in which Eibar were not given a penalty despite the ball apparently hitting Sergio Ramos' arm in the penalty box.

Real Madrid's Zidane admits his annoyance to such claims

Sergio Ramos nearly gave away a penalty against Eibar

When asked about the controversial decision, Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman opined that it was a penalty.

"For my part, I think it is a penalty, but that is all. The referee and his VAR team decided otherwise, and I respect that. But yes, if they ask me then yes, it’s a penalty," he said.

Koeman's comments were put forth to Real Madrid boss Zidane and the Frenchman expressed his annoyance with the statement.

"It has been annoying because I never get involved with the referees. I think the referees are in charge of the game and they do a good job. Like everyone here, they just try to do their job. I never get involved with them. It's a very difficult job," replied Zidane.

🎙️ Zidane: "It's annoying to talk about referees, I never get involved in this - I don't care about what Koeman said regarding Ramos' possible penalty in the last game."#RealMadridGranada pic.twitter.com/xbk3BucOzz

— Infinite Madrid (@InfiniteMadrid) December 22, 2020

Zidane also stated that he would not delve further into Koeman's statements.

"What Koeman said I'm not going to get into that. We have an important game tomorrow [against Granada], a very demanding game, and that's the only thing we're thinking about," the Madrid boss concluded.

Zinedine Zidane was reportedly close to being sacked a few weeks ago after a run of poor results saw Real Madrid nearly exit the Champions League in the group stages.

However, his side bounced back with some strong performances and managed to qualify for the next round of Europe's premier football competition. They have also enjoyed a positive run in the league.

Another blatant handball in the box unpunished. Similar to Sergio Ramos incident at Eibar, this time Unai Vencedor of Athletic at Villarreal. Can't find the image but it was a very, very obvious handball. La Liga refs seem to have become more lenient...or just two bad decisions?

— Andy West (@andywest01) December 22, 2020

Zidane has enjoyed tremendous success at Real Madrid, both as a player and as a manager. Now in his second coaching stint with the club, the 48-year old has earned praise for becoming a more complete manager.

Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was a vital cog of Real Madrid during Zidane's first spell as Real Madrid manager. His absence this time around has seen the reliance on young stars like Rodyrgo and Vinicius Junior increase, with Zidane leading Real Madrid to a league title last season.

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