Florentino Perez has canceled a routine dinner with Barcelona chief Joan Laporta ahead of El Classico, amid rising tensions between the clubs after Real Madrid announced they would join prosecutors in their pursuit of the Catalan giants because of the corruption scandal
- Barcelona charged with corruption over payments to an ex-referee chief
- Real Madrid announced that they will join the complaint filed by prosecutors
- Florentino Perez will miss Sunday’s El Classico, amid rising tensions
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez will not attend Sunday’s El Classico against Barcelona, amid rising tensions between the clubs over the Casa Negreira scandal.
The Catalan giants were last week charged with corruption over historic payments made by the club to the then vice-president of Spain’s referees committee.
Spain’s public prosecutor accused the club of maintaining a relationship with Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira where ‘in exchange for money’ he took actions that ‘lead to Barcelona being favored in the referees’ decision-making’.
The prosecution says Barcelona is accused of paying Negreira €7.3million (£6.46m) through two companies he owns – DASNIL and NILSAT. The relationship started in 2001 and ended in 2018 when the relationship with the former vice president of the Referees Committee was severed.
The club could face significant financial penalties if found guilty, and Negreira, former Barcelona presidents Sandro Rosell and Josep Bartomeu, and former directors Oscar Grau and Albert Soler could face up to four years in prison.
Real Madrid boss Florentino Perez will not attend tonight’s El Classico against Barcelona, amid rising tensions between the clubs over the Casa Negreira scandal
Last week Barcelona were charged with corruption over payments to former referees’ officials
Real Madrid then announced on Sunday that they would join the complaint filed by Spanish prosecutors.
In a club statement, they said: ‘Real Madrid express their deep concern about the seriousness of the facts and reiterate their full confidence in the action of justice and agree that, in defense of their legitimate interests , they will join the complaint as soon as the judge takes the case.’
This has put a significant strain on relations between the rivals ahead of tonight’s El Classico.
Despite apparently working together, with Juventus, to push for a European Super League, Perez is no longer expected to attend the clash at the Nou Camp, according to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo.
The customary dinner between the presidents of both clubs that takes place before each El Classico game was also canceled earlier in the week, meaning Perez will not be dining with his Barcelona counterpart Joan Laporta.
Perez is expected to watch the game from Madrid instead, with the Real boss likely to receive a very hostile reception from Barcelona supporters if he attends.
It was also the first time Perez had not attended an El Classico fixture during his two spells as Real president, spanning a 20-year period.
The clash is almost a must-win for Carlo Ancelotti’s side as they sit nine points behind the Catalan giants with 13 games remaining in LaLiga.
Despite easing into their Champions League last-16 tie with Liverpool by virtue of a 6-2 aggregate win, they have struggled for consistency in the league in recent months, which included suffering costly defeats to Mallorca and Villarreal.
The customary dinner between Barcelona president Joan Laporta and Perez was cancelled
News/Image Sources: Daily Mail
