La Liga chief Tebas hits back at Real Madrid as feud escalates: ‘Respect for all. Subordination to none’ | OneFootball

La Liga president Javier Tebas has responded to Real Madrid’s criticism with another strongly worded statement, defending his position on refereeing complaints and rejecting the club’s call for greater neutrality from him.

This comes only two hours after Real Madrid published an official statement lashing out at Tebas, and even calling for a change of leadership.

In their statement, Real Madrid described Tebas’ comments about their refereeing complaints as “serious and incomprehensible” and “unbecoming of a responsible executive”.

Real Madrid had accused Tebas of repeatedly targeting the club and said his interventions were damaging the image of Spanish football.

The club also called for a leader capable of running the competition with an “elementary duty of neutrality”.

Tebas strikes back

In his full statement, Tebas began by agreeing with one point made by Real Madrid: the president of La Liga is not the owner of the competition. He immediately added that the same applies to Real Madrid’s president.

“I’ve read the statement. I fully agree with one phrase: the president of La Liga is not the owner of the competition. The president of Real Madrid isn’t either,” he started.

Tebas also referred to statements claiming that LaLiga has little value without Real Madrid and that referees are harming the business that supports them.

He said Real Madrid’s response had not addressed those comments, which he described as the reason for his original intervention.

“Representing all the clubs requires defending equality and equity among them. Also when it’s claimed that ‘La Liga is worth nothing’ without Real Madrid or that referees harm ‘the business that feeds them.'”

“On those statements, which prompted my response, your statement doesn’t say a word.”

Further criticising Real Madrid’s position, he accused the club of trying to divert attention.

“Now they take cover in the fact that I responded to an “independent” journalist. But neither the narrative is new nor is the strategy of diverting attention from other problems.

“They’ve been doing it for years from Real Madrid TV and through their mouthpieces, talking and writing about a tampered League week after week.

“Don’t try to present as an external opinion the discourse they feed from their own television and from the club’s instances.”

Standing by his position

Tebas also addressed Real Madrid’s call for a LaLiga president who operates with “neutrality”, arguing that the club was confusing neutrality with independence.

“They demand that I contribute to generating trust in the impartiality of the competition. Precisely for that reason, I reject the narrative that referees are directed against Real Madrid,” he said.

Tebas has issued a strongly worded response to Real Madrid. (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images for Soccerex)

Tebas said he rejected the suggestion that referees are deliberately acting against Real Madrid.

“Criticizing a refereeing decision is legitimate. Turning every detriment into proof of persecution is something else. Does that generate trust or damage the image of Spanish football? They confuse neutrality with independence.”

Tebas said that if neutrality means never taking a position on what is right or wrong, then he would effectively be expected to abandon part of his responsibility.

“If by neutrality they mean not taking sides on anything, not even between what’s right and what’s wrong, they’re asking me to renounce my responsibility.

“Independence requires deciding with one’s own judgment, without pressures or subordinations, applying the same rules to everyone and defending the common interest.

“That implies making decisions and taking positions, even if Real Madrid doesn’t like it.

“Representing everyone does not mean obeying the most powerful”

Tebas also directly addressed Real Madrid’s claim that his role should be to serve the interests of all the clubs.

“Defending a club’s interests doesn’t mean assuming its discourse. And representing everyone doesn’t mean obeying the most powerful either. The interests of the competition, of La Liga, must be defended,” he said.

Concluding, Tebas insisted that his responsibility is to defend the interests of the competition and La Liga as a whole.

“I’m neither the owner of La Liga nor will I manage it as if it belonged to a single club. Respect for all. Subordination to none.”