Former Spanish referee Eduardo Iturralde González has criticised the decision to award Real Madrid a penalty in their 3-0 victory over Racing Santander, insisting that Kylian Mbappe should have been booked for simulation instead.

According to a report by Madrid Universal on Monday, November 2, 2026, Iturralde believes the referee made the wrong call when Mbappe went down inside the penalty area following contact from Racing midfielder Matteo Prati.

Real Madrid secured a comfortable victory on Sunday, with Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and Yan Diomande finding the net. The result also extended their winning run under Jose Mourinho to six consecutive matches.

However, the opening goal sparked controversy after referee Jose Luis Munuera awarded Madrid a penalty early in the encounter. Prati had made light contact with Mbappe’s chest inside the box, but the referee considered the challenge sufficient to award a spot-kick.

Mbappe stepped forward and calmly converted the penalty to give Madrid the lead, although the decision has since attracted criticism.

Speaking on Carrusel Deportivo, Iturralde argued that the French forward went to ground too easily and questioned why the referee considered the contact a foul.

The former official maintained that Racing Santander should have been awarded a direct free kick instead, while Mbappe deserved a yellow card for attempting to deceive the referee.

Iturralde also called for closer examination of the incident, pointing to similar decisions in other La Liga matches and raising concerns about the consistency of VAR interventions.

Despite the controversy surrounding the penalty, Real Madrid delivered an impressive overall performance. Mourinho’s team controlled much of the contest, particularly in the first half, and created several opportunities to increase their advantage.

VAR reviewed the incident but found no reason to overturn the referee’s original decision, allowing Mbappe’s penalty to stand.

Real Madrid will now turn their attention to their upcoming meeting with AEK Athens before travelling to face Valencia in another important fixture this weekend.