Xabi Alonso: "Ronaldo’s red was exaggerated, Gurpegui made the most of it and the crowd influenced the referee"
"It was a very good and intense match, we knew it would be a difficult trip", said the midfielder
Xabi Alonso spoke to the media after the draw against Athletic Bilbao. The midfielder responded to questions about the refereeing performance: "It was not aggression, Cristiano Ronaldo’s red was exaggerated, Gurpegui made the most of it and the crowd influenced the referee throughout the match. This always happens, it's nothing new. Cristiano shouldn’t have done what he did but it is not a sending off, that went against us. We came here with the intention of winning because it was a good opportunity to pick up points in the league but we knew it was going to be a difficult trip".
About the match, he said: "It was a fair result. It was a very good and intense match, the referee got some things wrong but that's normal. It is a shame to draw after going ahead, which was the most difficult thing. Ibai scored a great goal. We struggled to control the ball and get out from the back easily in the first half. We were better in the second half and created more chances. It was tougher to get a second after they had scored, but we did well despite playing with one less".
About how the La Liga table looks, he said: "We don’t have to look at other teams and have our fate in our own hands. There are a lot of points left to play for and it looks like that what happens between now and the end of the season will be very interesting".
When asked about Luis Aragones’ death, he said: "It is very sad because he was a unique and endearing person, we liked him very much and had a lot of affection for him. We connected and did great things". He was also asked about the recent death of a young footballer in Tolosa: "I heard about it before the match and it is not nice that these things happen. My thoughts are with the family".