Real Betis goalkeeper Fabricio insists he was quoted out of context after appearing to suggest his team had thrown a game last season.
A report on website muchodeporte.com claimed Fabricio was left out of the Betis team to play Sporting Gijon towards the end of last season after disagreeing with Coach Pepe Mel's reputed suggestions that the squad should take it easy against a team who were battling to avoid relegation at the time.
Fabricio then gave an ambiguous response when asked if he refused to play in the game, and found himself left out of the Betis squad for the midweek friendly against Benfica in Portugal as a result.
However, he moved to play down any talk of a fall-out over the incident when he spoke to the Press at the end of the week.
“I feel bad because of the mess this has created,” he said. “My words did not make clear exactly what I wanted to say. Betis always go out to win.
“At no point did I want to make anyone feel bad, but all this has been taken out of context. I want to apologise to anyone who has been hurt by this, especially the fans.
“I meant to say that I was a bit annoyed, that I didn't know I wasn't going to play and was only thinking about myself.”
The 24-year-old added that he has never been involved in any instance of match-fixing, saying: “That is all just make-believe, like the story about the Loch Ness monster, who they say is there but never is.”
Meanwhile, Betis president Miguel Guillen told Punto Radio that Fabricio missed the Benfica friendly because of a minor injury. “He had an injured hand. That is the only reason [for him not playing],” Guillen said.
