Nicolas Otamendi accuses Argentine league of bias after Superclásico

River Plate captain Nicolas Otamendi has voiced his deep frustration with the refereeing following a 0-1 defeat in the Superclásico against Boca Juniors. The veteran defender argued that the officiating was inconsistent and clearly biased against his team.

The match saw River Plate finish with nine men after Lucas Martínez Quarta was dismissed in the 10th minute and Gonzalo Montiel received a red card late in the game. Otamendi highlighted several incidents, including yellow card decisions and fouls, which he felt were handled with completely different criteria for each side.

The referee must be up to the level of the Superclásico. Today, different criteria were applied to different incidents—both for yellow and red cards—which put us at a disadvantage. It feels like different rules were applied to each team. Nicolas Otamendi

The Argentine international expressed concern for the overall state of the league, stating that the lack of consistent standards is destroying the prestige of the competition. He suggested that if the outcome is predetermined, the matches should not even be played.

They could just tell us right now who they plan to give the championship title to next season—then we wouldn't even have to take the field. Nicolas Otamendi