Spanish journalist Roberto Gómez has lit the fuse on a fresh controversy over who will referee the eagerly awaited Clásico between Barcelona and Real Madrid. Hernández Hernández, initially tipped to take charge, will not be handling the fixture, and Gómez suggests objections from Portuguese coach José Mourinho lie behind the change of plans.
Speaking on the "La Tribu" programme on "Radio Marca", Gómez claimed the referees' committee had been leaning towards Hernández Hernández before backing away. The early disclosure of the potential referee's name had stirred up controversy.
Raúl Varela asked him straight out whether the change was linked to Mourinho's objections. Gómez said yes. The Portuguese coach, he explained, had twice voiced his surprise at knowing the referee's name long before the match date.
Officials had wanted a referee with World Cup experience, the journalist added, and Hernández Hernández topped the list before the calculations changed.
According to Gómez, the parties concerned did not want to hand Mourinho another chance to escalate his complaints. "What they don't want is to give Mourinho any pretext," he said, a nod to just how sensitive the refereeing file has become ahead of the showpiece.
For all his talk of Hernández Hernández being ruled out, Gómez stopped short of naming the alternative. He floated Alberola Rojas and Sánchez Martínez as possibilities without confirming either.
The Real Madrid v Sevilla controversy
Gómez also weighed in on the refereeing row that followed Real Madrid's clash with Sevilla, and the expected meeting between Fran Soto and representatives of the Andalusian club to thrash out the contested decisions at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Would the meeting actually achieve anything? The journalist questioned how much transparency it could really provide. He rejected the idea that the head of the referees' committee should personally justify every call, while insisting the clubs should be given the footage and the most controversial incidents clarified.
Arda Güler's sending-off, Gómez noted, could have changed the course of the match had it come with the scoreline goalless in the 25th minute. Even so, he refused to reduce any team's results to refereeing decisions alone.
He also stood up for the television broadcast directors. Following the ball remains the priority during match broadcasts, he explained, and the cameras cannot always point towards events away from the play.