Barcelona must 'pay for their actions' over Negreira refereeing case as Real Madrid president says relationship with La Liga rivals 'completely broken'

The long-standing alliance between Spain’s two biggest clubs has reached a definitive end following Perez's latest comments regarding the Negreira case during an interview with Josep Pedrerol on La Sexta. The Real Madrid president did not hold back when discussing the investigation into Barcelona’s payments to former refereeing vice-president Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, labelling it the most significant scandal in the history of the sport.

Perez confirmed that the bond between the clubs is now non-existent. "It is completely broken," Perez stated. "I do not want to have a relationship with a club that has paid referees for two decades. I want them to pay for their actions, just as I would want for any other club. It is the biggest case of corruption in football. It is systemic corruption. Real Madrid is the only one that has appeared as a party. La Liga, on the other hand, says nothing."

Madrid have taken a proactive stance in the legal proceedings, with Perez revealing the extent of the documentation they are prepared to use to support their claims of unfair treatment. He suggested that the alleged corruption has had a direct and measurable impact on recent league standings, specifically citing the current campaign's frustrations.

The president detailed the club's next steps in the legal fight: "We are going to present all the documentation to UEFA. 500 pages. It is very important documentation. We have made, year after year, all the points that have been taken from us in a blatant way. This year they have taken between 16 and 18 points from us. If Barca wants to sue me, let them do it. I hadn't found out about the Negreira Case until three years ago. The first one who presents himself as a victim is Real Madrid. Then I realized that Barcelona had paid for more than two decades to the referees."

The explosive nature of the accusations follows a press conference held by Perez on Tuesday, where he called for new club elections and launched a fierce attack on Barcelona. This direct provocation prompted an immediate response from the Camp Nou. Barcelona vice-president Rafa Yuste was quick to dismiss Perez's claims as a distraction technique, suggesting that the Real Madrid president is attempting to mask his own club's on-field shortcomings following a season without major silverware.

Yuste offered a biting rebuttal to the allegations: "Florentino's words seemed pathetic and full of falsehoods to me. The club already issued a statement yesterday studying legal action, but I want to say that this maneuver by Florentino Perez to cover up a sporting disaster that has been going on for two years will not get him anywhere."

Beyond the war of words with Barcelona, Perez also addressed the internal climate at the Santiago Bernabeu. Despite reports of friction within the squad - specifically a training ground spat between Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni - the president remained defiant about his leadership and his intention to seek re-election.

"They get along perfectly well," Perez explained regarding his players. "Fights in training have been constant. Tell that to any club. But what you don't have is the bad faith of this orchestrated campaign. I have the obligation to get involved with journalists. And nothing happens. I have to defend the owners of Madrid, who are the members. You have to point out the journalists who are enemies of Real Madrid. I said, it's over. I'm going to call elections. Before going in there everyone thought I was going to leave. I want to continue and win many more European Cups."