Dean Huijsen has spoken from Spain’s national team camp, reflecting on the Madrid derby, controversial refereeing decisions, the La Liga title race and the upcoming Clásico against Barcelona.
The 21-year-old Real Madrid defender gave an interview to OK Diario in which he looked back on his start to the season and addressed several major talking points surrounding the club. Huijsen discussed the painful derby defeat, his sending-off, VAR decisions, Real Madrid’s six-point gap to Barcelona and his relationship with José Mourinho.
On the days following the derby defeat:
“Obviously, it was tough. But these things happen in football. You have to learn from them and keep moving forward.”
On his foul on Giuliano and the red card:
“I think the rule says that if you grab a player, it’s a red card. According to the rule, it has to be red, although in my opinion there should be a little more room for interpretation. Obviously, if you grab someone by the neck and pull him with all your strength, that’s different. There was contact, but Giuliano was also clever in going down and winning the penalty. I think the rule should give the referee a little more room to interpret situations like that.”
Huijsen nevertheless accepted responsibility for the incident.
On conceding the penalty:
“Obviously, it was my responsibility, and we could have won the match.”
The Spanish international was much more critical when discussing other refereeing decisions, particularly an incident involving Federico Valverde.
On VAR and the foul on Valverde:
“Honestly, I don’t understand it. I don’t know why VAR doesn’t intervene. The referee can make a mistake, that’s human, but then why do we have VAR?”
Huijsen also believes players should not need to exaggerate contact in order for serious challenges to be reviewed.
Should Valverde have stayed on the ground?
“It’s a shame because VAR is supposed to prevent all that acting, to stop players from staying on the ground and rolling around. Because Fede doesn’t stay down for five minutes making a scene, there’s no red card. But VAR should still see it.”
The defender was equally frustrated by a challenge on Jude Bellingham.
On the tackle on Bellingham:
“He goes in with both feet forward and catches him on the knee. Jude has a knee injury. Maybe it didn’t hurt him that much, but the contact is clearly there and, for me, that’s a red card. The referee can clearly see the studs making contact with his knee. I don’t know where you have to hit someone for it to be a red.”
🚨Dean Huijsen: “Controversy because Mbappé, Vini, Konate didn’t wear Ceuta shirt? I think everyone should do what they WANT. We wore, some didn’t.
— Madrid Zone (@theMadridZone) September 24, 2026
I watched Barcelona game and everyone there did NOT wear the shirt, but there WAS NOT as much CONTROVERSY.” pic.twitter.com/GSOBgjjFx9
Despite Real Madrid currently trailing Barcelona by six points, Huijsen is far from worried about the title race.
On whether winning La Liga will be difficult:
“No. I think it depends on us. We’ll see how things develop.”
On the Clásico in Barcelona:
“We obviously have to go there to win, but whatever happens, football changes very quickly. There are still 31 games left. There is a long way to go.”
He also reminded supporters how quickly a title race can change.
“Look at last year. We were seven points ahead after the Clásico and look at how La Liga ended. Everything is still to play for.”
Finally, Huijsen praised José Mourinho’s demanding approach.
“I think he knows what I’m capable of and he is very demanding with me. I worked very hard physically this summer to be in shape and, so far, I feel good. I’m being pushed a lot, and that’s a good thing for me.”
Asked about the Ballon d’Or, Huijsen remained diplomatic:
“I’m not going to pick anyone. Any of my teammates deserves it, whether with Spain or Real Madrid. There are a lot of nominees.”
Comments
No comments yet. Be the first to react.