On Friday, April 25, 2025, it will be recorded in the history of Spanish football as the most unusual eve of a final of the Copa del Rey in its 123 years of existence. Real Madrid's threat of Aposition even to play this Saturday's game in La Cartuja against FC Barcelona had as consummated preamble that neither the white team appeared to the training prior to the final, nor did the relevant press wheels announced by its coach, Carlo Ancelottinor your player Luka Modric and, finally, the scared institutional of the merengue club in the official dinner protocol. Since the great mess was made advanced in the afternoon, the press conferences that the Barça coach offered, Hansi Flickand one of the culés captains, Ronald Araujothey did not pronounce specifically on the hypothesis that the final was not played for the absence of the other finalist. MD could know, however, how that news that ran like a gunpowder trail was lived in the Barca squad, also spread by various means well connected to the Merengue club: Real Madrid thought even did not play the final, outraged by the press conference that, during the morning of the same Friday, had given the arbitrators designated for the game, Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea and Pablo González Fuertes. Both answered the questions about the pressures that Real Madrid's television has been making every eve of the game, also on this occasion.
In the interim of the Barca locker room, naturally, they were aware throughout the afternoon and part of the night of the news they gave as a true possibility that Real Madrid was not going to appear to play the final. They talked to him in the wardrobe culé and saw clear that all this sainete was leaked to press the referees and the Federation. But they never feared for the final dispute.
That is why they did not pay attention to the news that pointed to that possibility. In Barça they are already accustomed to Real Madrid go to the limit with the referees and, when they leave Burgos and González Fuertes, they were already expected that from the white club the tone would rise. Always, however, without reaching the point of not playing such an important game in which a title is in dispute that, among other things, bears the name of the King of Spain. In addition, there were already many Madrid fans who were already in Seville for this game and others who were traveling.
As the possibility that Real Madrid did not play the final of the Copa del Rey leaked after the Barça coach, Hansi Flickand one of his captains, Ronald Araujo. They offered the timely press conference in La Cartuja, the only questions to which they could answer publicly dealing with the morning press conference that the referees of the final had given, questioned by the permanent harassment campaign that the Television of the White Club is made on the eve of each of its matches, including this Saturday.
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Without entering specific cases, Flick chose to defend the prominence of the football show instead of continuing to inflame the arbitration debate. “You have to protect all the people of the game. Fans, everyone wants to see the players, how they play. We need the referees and we have to take care of them and be careful. It is not 'Fair play' not to take care of them, it is not to have respect,” he said. “” For me it is only sport, it's just football, “concluded Barça coach.
