Real Madrid’s 3-0 victory away to Racing Santander was overshadowed by controversy after Marc Cucurella appeared to mock an assistant referee following a disputed penalty decision.
The hosts strongly objected to two incidents during the match. The first involved the penalty awarded after Kylian Mbappe went down inside the area. The second came when referee Jose Luis Munuera Montero initially pointed to the spot for a handball by Aurelien Tchouameni, before overturning the decision after reviewing the footage on the video assistant referee monitor.
Images broadcast by DAZN after the incident appeared to show Cucurella sarcastically reacting to the assistant referee who had indicated that a penalty should be given.
The Real Madrid full-back continued looking towards the official for several seconds, repeatedly making exaggerated gestures of approval with his thumbs or fingers. He was also seen saying “brilliant” several times, apparently to suggest that the decision had been incorrectly judged.
The footage was widely shared on social media and led to criticism of Cucurella for mocking a match official who is expected to hold authority on the pitch.
The incident became one of the most widely discussed moments from a match that also featured repeated protests from Racing’s players and coaching staff.
Racing manager Jose Alberto said after the game that he believed the decision to cancel the penalty was correct based on the available footage. However, he questioned why similar checks had not been carried out for the penalty that led to Real Madrid’s opening goal.
“From my point of view, the decision was correct when you look at the footage of the penalty awarded to us and then overturned, but what really catches my attention is that similar incidents were not reviewed for the penalty from which Real Madrid scored the opening goal,” Jose Alberto said at his post-match news conference.
Cucurella joined Real Madrid from Chelsea last summer and has since become an important first-choice option at left-back.
Although he required some time to reach his best form, he has made 14 appearances in all competitions so far, starting nine of those matches. His total playing time for his new club is now close to 1,000 minutes.
Real Madrid’s listed fixtures include a Champions League match against AEK Athens on 04 November 2026, followed by a La Liga game against Malaga on 07 November 2026. Racing Santander are also listed among the upcoming opponents.
