The Spanish football federation (RFEF) has opened an investigation into Real Madrid after a complaint by Sevilla over a video aired by the club’s television channel ahead of their La Liga match last month.
Ahead of the February 25 fixture, Real Madrid TV broadcast a video which aimed criticism and alleged bias by two referees set to officiate the match at the Santiago Bernabeu.
They pointed to what they claimed were anti-Madrid decisions in prior matches from Isidro Diaz de Mera (the match referee) and Pablo Gonzalez Fuertes (the video assistant referee) including what they alleged were missed fouls against Madrid and several VAR decisions they believed to be incorrect.
Sevilla alleged that the video sought to “influence” the match officials and in doing so did “serious damage to Spanish football” and calls into question “the integrity of the competition itself and the honour of the refereeing establishment”.
A club statement said: “This has particular repercussions in matches played at the Santiago Bermabeu, as tens of thousands of Madrid fans arrive informed of the existence of an anti-Madrid bias in the referees who are going to intervene, which increases the tension and creates unfair pressure on them.”
Referee Isidro Diaz de Mera was criticised ahead of the game (Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
Madrid went on to win the game 1-0 thanks to a late Luka Modric goal.
Following the initial complaint the RFEF, through its disciplinary committee, has notified Sevilla of the opening of proceedings against Madrid on Thursday.
The video, broadcast on the club’s in-house TV channel, showed a number of decisions supposedly taken against Madrid by Diaz de Mera in a game with Alaves and suggested he should have shown yellow cards for several fouls and a red card for one which was only deemed a caution.
It also pointed to a number of decisions taken by Gonzalez Fuertes which supposedly went against Madrid throughout the season, including two “clear” penalties he didn’t advise the on-field referee to give against Las Palmas earlier this season
It also broadcast video of decisions taken by Gonzalez Fuertes as an on-field referee that they felt had gone against them.
Madrid are yet to comment.
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(Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
