A Spanish official has sued previous referees main Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira as the FC Barcelona corruption scandal deepens.
Enriquez Negreira, previously vice president of the Spanish FA’s Specialized Committee of Referees (CTA), obtained £1.2million from the Catalan giants in between 2016 and 2018, allegedly for furnishing information how to get much better treatment method from referees.
And latest official Xavier Estrada Fernández has sued the 77-yr-aged for sporting corruption or acquiring fraudulent payments in the most recent twist to the higher-profile affair which embroils Barcelona and its president Joan Laporta.
The lawsuit was introduced in the courts in Barcelona on Friday and alleges that Enriquez Negreira delivered tips and solutions ‘with the goal of securing refereeing decisions favourable to the interests of FC Barcelona’ while he was CTA vice-president, in distinctive seasons from 2003 to 2018.
The document shows he was paid all around £1.2m by Barcelona by using his organization DASNIL 95 SL amongst 2016 and 2018, meaning he was on the payroll of one of the clubs even though carrying out a supposedly neutral purpose for the governing body.
Spanish official Xavier Estrada Fernández (pictured operating as a referee in 2020, remaining) has sued previous referees main Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira as Barcelona’s corruption scandal deepens
Fernández has sued Enriquez Negreira, 77, just after he been given £1.2m from the club between 2016 and 2018, allegedly for delivering tips how to get better therapy from referees
It is the most recent twist to the superior-profile affair embroiling Barcelona and president Joan Laporta
Estrada’s situation is also introduced against Enriquez Negreira’s son Javier Enríquez Romero, who managed the enterprise and who presented ‘coaching’ expert services to lively referees when taking them from their lodge to the stadium.
Estrada previously worked as a referee in LaLiga, Spanish football’s leading flight, but has worked as a Video clip Assistant Referee (VAR) due to the fact the 2021-2022 period.
Enriquez Negreira has denied at any time favouring Barcelona with refereeing selections, when the club have admitted employing an ‘external consultant’ who supplied reports on ‘professional refereeing’.
Spanish outlet El Pais report that his enterprise sent Barcelona a written report and DVD with movie analysis discussing the profile of their upcoming referee right before each and every LaLiga and Copa del Rey sport.
LaLiga claimed on Friday it can’t investigate conditions from extra than 3 decades back, seemingly ruling out punishments like Barcelona remaining docked points or titles currently being eradicated.
But prosecutors’ investigations are ongoing and legal charges could be brought. On Thursday, newspaper El Mundo presented files which mentioned Barca experienced compensated DASNIL 95 SL far more than £5.8m from 2001.
El Mundo also revealed a burofax Enriquez Negreira despatched to the club in 2018 following Barcelona halted payments, in which he said he would provide about a ‘scandal’ by ‘revealing with no hesitation all the irregularities from the club I have lived via initial-hand’, except if payments commenced once again.
He extra: ‘I have the firm intention to sue the club, which would carry adverse repercussions for FC Barcelona.’
Laporta (second appropriate) was urged to resign by LaLiga main Javier Tebas if he does not ‘justify properly’ what took place, before he strike back again, accusing Tebas of having an anti-Barcelona bias
Xavi’s Catalan giants exited the Europa League on Thursday just after a 2-1 decline in opposition to Gentleman United
Atletico Bilbao manager Ernesto Valverde, who managed Barcelona from 2017 to 2020, said on Saturday: ‘It’s been a little bit of a surprise for me.
‘During my time in Barcelona, I did not appear at them (the payments), and essentially failed to even know they existed.
‘It’s a thing widespread: in this article, at Bilbao, we have our reviews about the referees that we are heading to have on the up coming activity. I picture the story will get clearer with time. We don’t have the whole image so I desire to remain careful about that.’
Enriquez Negreira began performing as a top rated-flight referee in 1979 and rose up the ranks to become CTA vice-president by 1994.
He informed Spanish tax authorities final week Barcelona paid out him ‘to make absolutely sure no refereeing decisions have been made towards them, which is to say, for every little thing to be neutral’.
On Monday, LaLiga chief Javier Tebas reported: ‘If he (Laporta) does not justify thoroughly or in a a lot more affordable way what has occurred, I believe he really should resign.
‘Some of the comments they have made as a club have been extremely superficial. This is inflicting terrific damage on specialist soccer. We want the prosecutor’s business to increase costs and examine right until the conclude.’
Laporta responded: ‘We had been suggested that Tebas was selling a marketing campaign against Barcelona and myself as a president. Now he’s demonstrated his real colors. He is obsessed with Barca and has some form of phobia with our club.
‘He cannot forgive us for rejecting his CVC deal. He cannot deal both with the truth we are backing the Super League. His purpose is to management Barcelona from a length, but he can not do that with me in demand.’
Barcelona, for their component, assert they have introduced their personal probe into the make any difference.