"The sending off of Ronaldinho was far too rigorous and it was one of the things that influenced Barca's elimination from the Cup," Archbishop Lluis Martinez-Sistach told TV3 on Thursday.

"The game lasts 90 minutes and the team had to play with a man down. That is possible sometimes but you have to remember that Ronaldinho is a very influential player."

Ronaldinho was dismissed late in the first half of Wednesday's quarterfinal when he collided with Zaragoza midfielder Cani, although the challenge did not appear worthy of a straight red card.

Barcelona, who lost last week's first leg 4-2, went on to win the game 2-1 but it was not enough to earn them a place in the semifinals and they waved goodbye to their first chance of a trophy this season.