Gerard Pique takes another shot at Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa with giant banner | OneFootball

Former Barcelona player Gerard Pique has targeted Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa as part of his latest marketing stunt. The ex-Spain defender has a history of aggressive marketing moves in order to promote his King’s League and Queen’s League projects, and the latest has referenced a famous interview comment that Pique made about Arbeloa.

The Blaugrana icon previously referenced his famous photo with Neymar Junior, declaring that ‘He’s staying’, just days before the Brazilian made a €222m move to Paris Saint-Germain. Denis Suarez has since noted that Pique knew that Neymar was leaving for PSG when he posted the photo. His latest move references the current Real Madrid manager, and is visible in large writing on Gran Via, Madrid’s main street.

Pique targets Arbeloa with giant banner

The banner reads ‘We’re not as well known, but we will be’, relating to the announcement that the King’s League is returning to action on the first of March. The writing differentiates the ‘cono’ part of ‘conocidos’ [known or acquaintance], which on its own translates as ‘cone’ in Spanish.

The back story behind the banner

The highlighting of ‘cone’ is a reference to a famous interview that Pique gave in 2015 while he was still playing for Barcelona, and Arbeloa was featuring for Real Madrid. Arbeloa had commented that ‘One day I will see Pique in the comedy club speaking about Madrid’, to which Pique responded ‘Arbeloa has declared himself a friend of mine, but he is just an acquaintance. He is a cone-acquiantance’  – the play on words does not translate particularly well.

Image via Marca.

‘I don’t have much more to say, just that Arbeloa was an acquaintance, and everyone can interpret what they want. I was very clear, and I have little more to say on it,’ remarked later. During Real Madrid’s recent 2-0 win over Valencia, La Liga recorded chants of ‘You’re a cone, Arbeloa you’re a cone’, as per Marca.