Barcelona have issued a formal response after Florentino Perez accused the Catalan giants of benefiting from what he described as the “biggest scandal in football”.
The Catalan giants released a statement on Tuesday confirming that the club’s legal department is reviewing comments made by the Real Madrid president before deciding whether to take further action.
“Regarding the press conference called by Real Madrid President Florentino Perez, we inform you that our legal department is carefully reviewing his statements and accusations,” the statement read.
“These are currently being analysed, and the next steps are being assessed.
“We will provide further information on our position and any decisions made when appropriate.”
The response came after Perez used a lengthy media appearance to intensify Real Madrid’s criticism of the ongoing Negreira investigation.
The 79-year-old alleged that the case had cost Real Madrid as many as seven La Liga titles and described it as the most serious controversy the sport has ever faced.
Real Madrid supremo Florentino Perez made the extraordinary remarks at a press conference on Tuesday
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Perez also said that Real Madrid are compiling a dossier of what he believes to be favourable refereeing decisions involving Barcelona, which he claims will be submitted to UEFA at the end of the season.
Real Madrid have been actively involved in the Negreira proceedings and are participating in the legal process as a private prosecutor.
The case centres on payments made by Barcelona to companies linked to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, who served as vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees in Spain.
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According to court documents, prosecutors are investigating payments totalling several million euros made between 2001 and 2018.
Spanish authorities allege the payments may have been connected to efforts to obtain favourable refereeing treatment.
Barcelona have consistently denied wrongdoing and are adamant they’ll be able to clear their name.
The club maintains that the payments were for legitimate consultancy and technical reports relating to referees and scouting, and insist they did not seek to influence match officials.
No final judicial ruling has been made, and the legal process remains ongoing.
Meanwhile, Perez also insisted that he was still the right man to lead Los Blancos despite the club enduring a difficult past two years.
Barcelona recently beat Real Madrid to win the La Liga title for the second season in a row
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“I’m here to say I’m not going anywhere and I’m here to stand for election,” said the 79-year-old.
“If someone does want to stand for election, this is your opportunity. But don’t move in the shadows with publications, news outlets.
“And I’m not in bed, unwell. I have to come out and sit here because as Real Madrid president, I can’t allow journalists to do what they do.”
Perez has ruled the roost at the Bernabeu ever since 2009. He was previously president between 2000 and 2006.
