For issuing Messi his first ever red card in club football, authorities set to do 1 thing to referee

- Lionel Messi was handed his first-ever club red card during Barcelona’s 3-2 loss to Athletic Bilbao

- Koeman earlier alleged that the star was kicked on several occasions during the encounter

- Jaume Roures has called for the sanctioning of the referee for failing to caution Bilbao players

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Referee Jesus Gil Manzano is under heavy criticism for giving Barcelona captain Lionel Messi his first-ever red card in club football according to latest reports.

Manzano sent the Argentine legend off for the first time in his club career during Barcelona’s 3-2 loss to Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Super Cup final.

Messi appeared to have pushed opposition striker Asier Villalibre off his way before the player went down the turf, and following a VAR review, the six-time Ballon d’Or winner was shown red.

Ronald Koeman earlier alleged that the star was kicked on several occasions during the encounter and that he was not surprised the captain reacted that way.

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But according to the founding partner of Spanish multimedia group Mediapro Jaume Roures, the match referee should be sanctioned for failing to caution Bilbao players for their hard tackles on the superstar.

Roures told Marca via Mirror.

"It is clear that Messi committed an action that he should not have done and that he had never done before."But I think we should not have reached the situation in which Messi was because the referee never intervened in the fouls he received."If he had shown some yellow cards, we would not have reached that situation."They should also sanction the referee. I think Messi will stay [at Barcelona] if he sees a winning project."

Meanwhile, Barcelona legend Dani Alves remains the only footballer with most trophies in football history having won an unprecedented 42 titles during his breathtaking career.

The Brazilian legend who began his professional career early enough went on to play for clubs including Sao Paolo, Barcelona, Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain.