Ceferin: "Neither Real Madrid nor anyone will tell UEFA what to do"

MADRID, 25 May. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The president of UEFA, Aleksander Ceferin, stated this Wednesday that "neither Real Madrid, nor anyone" will be able to tell the body that president what "has to do" after the renewal by Kylian Mbappé with Paris Saint-Germain, in in relation to the complaint that LaLiga will present in pursuit of financial 'fair play'.

"UEFA has financial fair play rules that are quite strict. Whoever respects our rules is welcome to play in our competitions; whoever does not respect the rules will not," Ceferin said in an interview with the BBC, which is collected by Europa Press.

"Look, neither Real Madrid nor anyone will tell UEFA what to do. They are outraged from one point of view and, as far as I know, their offer was similar to [PSG's] offer," Ceferin added of the continuity of Mbappé in Paris.

Ceferin understands the discomfort of the white club and also of LaLiga, who described the operation as "scandalous" and "an insult to football" in relation to the difficulty in competing against 'club-states' that do not respect the margins of financial fair play.

PSG is owned by Qatar Sports Investments, a subsidiary of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Qatar's state sovereign wealth fund. In this sense, Ceferin says that he is "tired" of the complaints about the will of the sport to allow 'club-states'.

"I've said it many times and I'll say it again, give me an argument why they shouldn't own a club," Ceferin said. "If you say the clubs belong to the fans, don't you think the other English clubs have owners? They have owners from the United States, some from the Middle East, they have owners from England. So it's exactly the same situation. I'm really tired of these accusations without concrete foundations," he added.

"I want to know who broke the rules and if you break the rules, you will be punished," said Ceferin, who also spoke about the situation in Ukraine. UEFA has helped the Ukraine national team "find a solution" to their decision to train in Slovenia ahead of their key World Cup tie against Scotland on June 1.

"For sure they will have to play away, even at home, but it will depend on the clubs they decide to prepare for the season. We will do everything to help, but it is absolutely impossible for them to play at home," Ceferin concluded.