Berlin (dpa-Stats Perform)
Xavi Hernandez, coach of FC Barcelona, confirmed that his team was not affected by the talk about the Negrera scandal, before the upcoming El Clasico match against Real Madrid tomorrow, Wednesday, in the second leg of the Golden Square of the King’s Cup.
The European Football Association (UEFA) is conducting investigations against Barcelona regarding allegations that the Catalan club was involved in paying bribes to Jose Maria Enriquez Negrera, former vice-chairman of the Referees Committee of the Spanish Football Federation.
Radio Sir Catalunya reported, last February, that FC Barcelona paid about seven million euros to a company in which Negrera, former vice-chairman of the Referees Technical Committee of the Spanish Federation, contributes between 2016 and 2018.
The newspaper El Pais reported that the Nigerian company, DASNAL 95SL, wrote reports and evaluations with footage of the referees before the matches.
Xavi said, today, Tuesday, in a press conference: “The additional sports issues do not leak into the locker rooms. We talk about how to defend and how to attack. We do not talk about UEFA or Negrera.”
He pointed out, “We focus on the cup. There is a Clasico match. They will come looking for revenge, and we want to show that we can win again. The Camp Nou stadium must be a pressure cooker.”
He explained, “I listen very little to external comments. We should not be distracted by anything. Tomorrow we can achieve double joy, by defeating Real Madrid and reaching the final. We are much better than last season.”
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