Atletico Madrid’s president, Enrique Cerezo, was confident in his team’s performance at the Santiago Bernabéu ahead of their first-leg matchup against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League round of 16. However, Cerezo did not hold back when discussing the refereeing issue in football, saying that the referees have “lost a lot of authority with VAR” and stressing that there is no difference between officiating in national competitions and European tournaments, which is in contrast to Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti’s opinions.
“I say the same thing every time. Referees should be respected, and we must keep in mind that they are the ones who control the game, not the others who make assumptions we may not agree with. “The issue is that referees have lost a lot of authority with VAR,” Cerezo said Monday at the Laureus Awards nomination ceremony in Madrid. He also reaffirmed that referees in La Liga and European competitions are the same.
Cerezo insisted that Atletico Madrid always strives for victory as he looked ahead to the Champions League match, emphasizing the significance of making it to the quarterfinals. “On every pitch, we aim to win, and naturally, we will do the same here. It is a Champions League match, and our goal is to reach the last eight and be among the finest clubs in Europe which is what counts to us,” he remarked.
Historically, Atlético has never eliminated Real Madrid from the Champions League, a reality that Cerezo acknowledged: “In football, anything can happen, and anyone can win. We want to have a good game while they do not, and that we can take the victory.”
Speaking about La Liga, where Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid are only three points apart, Cerezo acknowledged the close race, saying that normally there would only be one competitor at this juncture. “Normally, at this point, there would be only one candidate, but now there are three,” he said in response to Real Madrid’s recent loss to Real Betis. Anything could occur at any moment. We may lose games, and we may lose matches. We have to wait till the finish to see what happens. Everything is really close, and anyone who falters will have less chance.”
