MADRID (AP) – The team that calls itself the best in the world is entangled in an ordeal that only amateur clubs are used to dealing with.
Real Madrid inexplicably fielded an ineligible player in a Copa del Rey match last week, prompting its embarrassing elimination from the competition. To make it worse, the club is defiantly trying to shift blame and avoid punishment on a technicality.
The mistake and the attempt to dodge responsibility dents Madrid’s grandiose reputation, and exposes the fragility of the Spanish giant. It further deepens the crisis sparked by a demoralizing 4-0 home loss to rival Barcelona two weeks ago, and raises questions about the future of its leaders.
Fans have had enough and are not being easily satisfied by wins on the field. The calls for the resignation of coach Rafa Benitez and president Florentino Perez have become a constant at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
The team’s disqualification from the Copa del Rey because of a bureaucratic misstep is proving to be too much to the team’s demanding supporters. And although some might be happy that the club is doing everything it can to get reinstated, the attempt is seen by the rest of the soccer world as an act of desperation.