Real Madrid News
‘Must respect your opponents, not make excuses’ – Former Barcelona manager criticises Real Madrid
The tension surrounding the Negreira case continues to dominate Spanish football, and now Ronald Koeman has become the latest figure to publicly challenge Real Madrid’s position on the controversy.
The former Barcelona manager, currently leading the Netherlands national football team, responded after recent comments made by Florentino Perez during his explosive press conference discussing refereeing controversies and the unresolved Negreira investigation.
Perez’s shots at Barcelona
During that appearance, the Real Madrid president strongly criticised both Barcelona and Spanish football authorities while demanding further clarity regarding the case.
“I didn’t come here so that the referees could enrich themselves with Barcelona ‘s money.”
“Three years ago we learned about the Negreira Case. The biggest scandal in history. They’ve been paying for two decades, but now it’s the same referees for this third decade.”
Those comments immediately intensified the already toxic atmosphere between Spain’s two biggest clubs and triggered another wave of reactions across football.
What did Koeman say?
Now Koeman has entered the debate and his response leaves little doubt about where he stands.
While discussing Real Madrid’s difficult season, Koeman acknowledged the pressure that naturally exists at a club of that size.
However, he also suggested that many of the current reactions coming from Real Madrid are linked to disappointment over failing to compete at the expected level.
“Real Madrid are a huge club, where winning trophies is a must, and this has been a very poor season for them. Things have happened that normally shouldn’t happen.”
Koeman then addressed the references to the Negreira case and made it clear he believes Barcelona’s recent domestic success has been deserved on sporting merit.
“You can’t criticise Barcelona for winning the last two titles; they’ve played better than the rest and have been superior.
“If you lose, you have to respect the opposition and not look for excuses. It’s not a question of referees or other things,” he concluded, as per AS.
Real Madrid News
Rayo Vallecano manager names the one Real Madrid figure he would remove from the team
Rayo Vallecano face a daunting trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to take on a wounded Real Madrid this weekend.
Life after Inigo Perez has not been kind to the Vallecas-based club, who have already had to travel to Camp Nou and now face a trip to the home of their city giants.
Speaking ahead of the game (h/t Madrid Xtra), Rayo Vallecano manager Benat San Jose was asked which Real Madrid player he would like to remove from the team before this weekend’s game.
Surprisingly, his choice was not Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior or Thibaut Courtois.
“Mourinho”
Asked which Madrid player he would take out of the upcoming contest, Benat jokingly chose the man sitting on the opposition bench.
“Which Real Madrid player I’d remove from the match against them? Mourinho,” Benat said with a laugh.
The answer might have been delivered jokingly, but the Rayo coach immediately made clear just how highly he rates the Portuguese manager.
“He’s one of the best managers in history,” he added.
It is significant praise ahead of Saturday’s meeting at the Bernabeu.
Madrid’s squad contains enough individual quality to give any opposition coach several obvious answers, but Benat instead highlighted the influence Mourinho can have over the entire team.
That has become particularly relevant since the Portuguese coach returned to Madrid. His early work has focused on making a talented group function with greater collective discipline.
Courtois and Madrid’s attack also praised
Benat did not stop with the manager.
“They also have one of the best GKs in history and one of the best attackers in history,” he said.
Benat will definitely have seen how Thibaut Courtois played against Inter Milan in midweek and will hope that version does not turn up again this weekend.
Even when teams manage to create opportunities against Madrid, they still have to beat one of the defining goalkeepers of his generation.
At the opposite end, Madrid possess attacking quality capable of turning a match on its head.
The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham can all decide matches single-handedly.
Madrid have a point to prove
Madrid are coming off a disappointing loss to Real Betis in La Liga last weekend and will come into this game with a point to prove.
They will want to ensure that the loss to the Andalusian club was a one-off and that they return to winning ways against Rayo.
Their title rivals, Barça, have been flying high in the league, scoring goals and picking opponents apart for fun.
Madrid need to ensure that they do not hand too much early incentive to Barça, and it remains to be seen how Los Blancos fare against Rayo Vallecano.
