As Real Madrid voiced its discontent over the comments made by the referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, terming them as "unacceptable", serious concerns were levelled that stated that the club could back out from participating in the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona. The assertion was made after Real Madrid's request for the removal of the referee from the Copa del Rey final against FC Barcelona was met with a rejection from RFEF.
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El Clasico is On
However, as it turns out, the Los Blancos have conveyed that they will be playing the CDR final. In a statement
“Real Madrid communicates that our team has never considered giving up playing tomorrow's final”. “Our club understands that the unfortunate and inappropriate statements of the referees appointed for this match, made 24 hours before the final, cannot stain a sporting event of global importance that hundreds of millions of people will see and also out of respect for all the fans who plan to travel to Seville, and to all those who are already in the Andalusian capital”. “Real Madrid understands that the values of football must prevail, despite the hostility and animosity that have been evident today, once again against our club, by these referees designated for the final”.
Hence, the El Clasico between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona is unfazed, and will take place on Saturday at the scheduled time.
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What Caused the Controversy?
Addressing an RMTV video that highlighted the mistakes he made during his career, Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, the referee who has been assigned to officiate the Copa del Rey final, went out in public to express his thoughts.
"When a child arrives at school and his mates tell him that his father is a thief, it makes you sick. What I do is try to educate my son to tell him that his father is an honest man, that he makes mistakes like any other sportsman."
"It’s very hard, I don’t recommend it to anyone … It is not right what we are going through for many colleagues, not only in professional football but also in grassroots football. Let everyone reflect on where we want to go, on what we want from sport and from football.”
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