Guilty of a nasty foul on Bradley Barcola, Ronald Araujo was sent off (29th) Tuesday during the Champions League quarter-final return leg between FC Barcelona and PSG. After the Catalan elimination, İlkay Gündogan regretted the choice of his teammate, believing that the red card had “killed” his team.
Winner of the Champions League with Manchester City last season, İlkay Gündoğan will not win the trophy in his first year with FC Barcelona. This Tuesday, the Catalan club was overthrown (4-1) by PSG during a quarter-final return, enough to give regret to the German midfielder.
The match changed with the red card inflicted on Ronald Araujo (29th), for a foul on Bradley Barcola. “I’m disappointed, very disappointed because we were in such a good position, not only after the first leg but also after the first goal we scored,” commented Gündoğan. “Everything was in our hands and we just gave it to PSG. We did it the easiest way possible. That’s the most disappointing.”
“I prefer to concede a goal”
Unlike Xavi, his coach, İlkay Gündoğan did not want to criticize the referee’s decision concerning this red given to Araujo. The 33-year-old seemed to disagree with his teammate’s risky intervention. “It’s difficult to say, I think that in these crucial moments, you have to be very sure when you intervene, when you go for the ball. I don’t know if he touches the ball or not. But I prefer to take a goal or even award a one-on-one. I prefer to give the goalkeeper the opportunity to stop him, or even give him the goal frankly.
“Receiving a red card so early in the match, it kills you,” summed up the experienced Gündoğan, captain of Manchester City last season. For the Catalans, we will have to quickly raise our heads with a Clasico to be played this Sunday in La Liga, on the Real Madrid pitch. At the end of the season, Barça only has the championship to play. With seven days to go, the Blaugrana club is eight points behind its Madrid rival.
