Thebes: "Gil Marín did not talk about the referees, but about the media environment"

MADRID, 30 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The president of LaLiga, Javier Tebas, has ensured that the CEO of Atlético de Madrid, Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, did not complain about the referees but about the "media environment" to which the rivals of Real Madrid and FC Barcelona are usually subjected .

"I don't think that the referees benefit Real Madrid. Mr. Gil Marín spoke of a media environment that always occurs with the big clubs (...) They took something out of context, but I am convinced that the referees do not benefit Real Madrid or any club," he said before the Madrid Sports Press Association (APDM) Annual Awards Gala, held this Monday at the Beatriz Madrid Auditorium in the Spanish capital.

In addition, he recalled that both Atlético de Madrid and its CEO "have the right to give their opinion, especially on an issue that has nothing to do with the referees, but with the media pressure that is always generated by the big clubs."

In another order of things, he insisted on the need for the clubs to go hand in hand with LaLiga when it comes to reporting cases of racism towards their players, such as what was suffered by Real Madrid player Vinícius. "We have denounced the courts because we do not agree with the opinions of the prosecutors that have existed at some point. In the case of Vinícius and other players in these circumstances, we encourage the clubs to also accompany us in court. I encourage Real Madrid to join us in the complaint in the Valladolid case," he stressed.

Thebes also spoke of the possibility that FC Barcelona reinforces itself in this winter market and the salary limit of the squad. "The issue of not registering Gavi comes as a consequence of the fact that it is a registration that takes effect next season. The forecast deficit for FC Barcelona is 200 million euros as of today, it does not seem appropriate. Regarding the registrations now, has an amount for the abandonment of Piqué. Barcelona will have to decide. As Barça said in its assembly in June, the club has to reduce its salary mass; from 600 million it has dropped to 400, "he said.

The president of the employers' association also did not refuse to talk about the arrest of Dani Alves after being accused of an alleged rape. "I am quite shocked. If the facts are proven, he will have to pay the consequences. These issues are not a joke, they are not a night game, if he has committed a violation let the weight of the law fall on him," he said.

Regarding the Kings League, a new initiative created by Gerard Piqué, he insisted that it has "nothing to do" with traditional football. "I think it's very good for Gerard Piqué, for Ibai, but it's a 'youtubers' phenomenon. Why wasn't there a Kings League yesterday? Because there was a very important 'youtubers' event in Mexico. It's a different thing. I'm glad that they do very well, but it has nothing to do with us," he said.

Lastly, Tebas spoke about LaLiga Impulso, the project that was awarded this Monday by the APDM. "I am very happy with the LaLiga Impulso project, with centralized sales and economic control, it is one of the most important projects in professional football in history, because it allows a very significant investment in all the clubs and advance investments that organically would have taken 15 or 20 years. It allows the clubs to modernize and allows us to become a more competitive league if possible, which is very necessary in the current world of the sports industry," he declared.

In this sense, he downplayed the rejection of the project by Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and Athletic Club. "There are so many things that the clubs themselves are not convinced... I think the criticism comes from another direction, they come mainly from the president of Real Madrid. All clubs have the right to be able to reform their stadiums, to have large sports cities, to grow in digitization... This allows clubs resources that they would not have and create synergies to grow. Maybe they won't like the others to grow", he concluded.