A former referee shocks Real Madrid: Barcelona could force UEFA to pay the price in the Negreira case
How did Pérez err in the corruption case?
Eduardo Iturralde González has set the record straight on the Negreira case in his strongest comments since the scandal erupted. The former Spanish international referee branded Real Madrid's recent moves "strange" and insisted UEFA's statement contains nothing new to incriminate Barcelona.
Iturralde delivered the remarks on Cadena SER's famous "El Larguero" programme, weighing in on the latest twist: the exchange of statements and the fresh documents Real Madrid have submitted to UEFA against the Catalan club.
He played down the European body's statement, dismissing it as a mere formality. "This, as UEFA's own statement confirms, is merely an announcement that they have submitted additional information in a case they have been studying since 2023. This statement adds nothing else," Iturralde said.
On the heart of the matter, the alleged influencing of referees, he was categorical. Three years of judicial investigation backed up his verdict.
"Over three years, the Civil Guard has not proven, and will not prove, the existence of any influence on any referee," he explained. "In other words, if there is no influence on any referee, then there is no sporting corruption."
A direct attack on Real Madrid
Real Madrid did not escape the former referee's criticism. He spotted a glaring contradiction in the Royal club's position.
"If there are 50,000 pages that implicitly prove the existence of sporting corruption, as some claim, then what you must do is submit them to the competent court, not to UEFA," Iturralde said.
Then he turned on Real Madrid's strategy. "It is strange that Real Madrid, in its latest statement, asks the European body to rule on the case as quickly as possible, while in Spain they take a long time to rule on the matter because the extensions that Real Madrid itself requests only serve to prolong the Negreira case. It is strange that they prolong it while there are no sporting results."
Why is UEFA silent?
The programme laid bare the thinking behind UEFA's position, which looks extremely cautious.
Journalist Albert Lemos pointed out that UEFA's regulations clearly state any club involved in manipulating or influencing match results can be declared ineligible for European competition for a full season. The rules even allow such a decision without waiting for a ruling from the Spanish judiciary.
UEFA chose to wait anyway. Jordi Martí explained why: "Before taking any action, they want to make sure they are not acquitted by the ordinary courts. Imagine if Barcelona were suspended from competition for a year, with the huge financial losses that would result from that, and then the ordinary courts acquitted them. In that case, Barcelona's claim would be so exorbitant that it would cost UEFA a vast fortune."
Host Julio Pulido drew the conclusion: UEFA's latest statement is nothing more than an "acknowledgement of receipt" of Real Madrid's documents. The European body has yet to open any new separate investigation, preferring to wait for the final word from the Spanish courts.
