Real Madrid News
Real Madrid’s report for FIFA on refereeing injustice during Negreira era almost ready
In a major development, El Chiringuito TV’s Josep Pedrerol reports that Real Madrid are almost ready with their report on the refereeing in Spanish football during the Negreira era, which they will be sending to FIFA for review.
Indeed, the Merengues are preparing a report that they will send to FIFA to demonstrate that the club were harmed by refereeing decisions for around 20 years, coinciding with the period in which Barcelona were paying the vice president of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.
While the Blaugrana have always maintained that the payments were made for receiving reports on La Liga referees and scouting reports on players, the matter continues to be investigated in the Spanish courts.
It is worth noting that Real Madrid appeared as a private prosecution in the Negreira case after the judge ruled that the club were an ‘offended or harmed party in relation to the crime of sporting corruption’.
Now, Los Blancos are working on and are almost done with the report that they will forward to FIFA to highlight the refereeing injustice that they felt was prevalent during the Negreira era.
Real Madrid, led by president Florentino Perez, continue to insist that Barcelona were favoured by refereeing decisions.
During the recent club assembly, the Real Madrid president made a pointed remark at the same, saying:
“It is not normal for Barcelona to pay the vice-president of the referees more than €8m over 17 years, whatever the reason. It coincides, coincidentally, with Barcelona’s best sporting period.”
Gianni Infantino, president of the world football governing body, is aware of the situation and knows that this report, which includes videos and other documentation, will arrive at FIFA headquarters in the coming days.
Real Madrid News
Mourinho reacts to Vinicius suspension: “Why announce it two hours before an important match?”
Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has questioned the RFEF Disciplinary Committee’s decision to announce Vinicius Jr.’s four-match suspension just hours before their UEFA Champions League meeting with AS Roma on Wednesday.
The Brazilian has been hit with a four-match ban for his red card against Villarreal, meaning he will miss the matches against Sevilla, Barcelona, Racing Santander, and Valencia.
And, speaking to Movistar+ (h/t MARCA) before the match, the Real Madrid manager was asked whether the punishment could affect the Brazilian psychologically.
Mourinho instead turned his attention to the football authorities and the timing of their announcement.
“I think that is a question for the Committee. Why have they announced the suspension at this particular moment? If you are asking me this question, it is presumably because you think it could affect him,” the Portuguese coach replied.
“You should ask the Committee why they did not announce it this morning, or tomorrow morning. Why do they do it two hours before a match that is important for Real Madrid, which is a Spanish club?” he added, questioning the timing of the decision.
Mourinho explains his tactical approach against Roma
The Real Madrid manager also outlined his plan for facing a Roma side known for their aggressive pressing.
“My intention is to stop them from pressing us so high up the pitch, given the players we have available and as a precaution,” he said.
Continuing, the Portuguese manager added: “They press man-to-man higher up the pitch better than anyone else, and we will see whether we can take advantage of that. If not, they will have to drop their press five or ten metres.”
Why Rudiger over Huijsen
Mourinho also justified his decision to start Antonio Rudiger at centre-back alongside Ibrahima Konate rather than Dean Huijsen.
“They played very well together in the last match, Rudiger and Konate, showing great leadership and the ability to withstand a difficult situation when we had ten men for 30 minutes,” he said.
“I am not saying Dean is not capable of playing a match like this, but this is a wonderful atmosphere for Roma and a difficult one for us. I think a player with Antonio’s experience can be important,” Mourinho added.
Finally, Mourinho was asked about his emotions ahead of returning to face Roma, the club he managed between 2021 and 2024.
The Portuguese coach offered a brief response, saying that he had his feelings about the occasion “blocked”.
