According to Mundo Deportivo, FC Barcelona have been fined €22,500 by UEFA following their UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg against Atletico Madrid at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on 14 April.
The UEFA Disciplinary Committee confirmed the punishment after reviewing incidents that took place during the match, which Barcelona won 2-1 but still failed to overturn the 2-0 first-leg deficit in the tie.
Why the fines?
As per the report, the largest part of the sanction, €20,000, was issued because of the delayed restart at the beginning of the second half.
UEFA has become increasingly strict regarding late kick-offs and delays to match schedules in European competitions.
An additional €2,500 fine was imposed after fireworks were lit in the section occupied by Barcelona supporters during the game.
Barcelona were eliminated from the UCL by Atletico Madrid. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
Barcelona went into the game at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano trailing Atletico Madrid 2-0 after having lost the first leg at the Spotify Camp Nou.
A blistering start to the match saw the Catalans erase the Rojiblancos’ advantage and level things up in the tie. But a goal from Ademola Lookman gave the hosts a narrow lead on aggregate.
However, some controversial refereeing, like in the first leg of the quarter-finals, coupled with a second-half red card to Eric Garcia, ended up derailing the Catalans’ hopes of completing a turnaround.
It was a tremendous blow for Hansi Flick and Barcelona, considering that the Champions League had been underlined as the ultimate goal of the season by everyone in the team.
