Referees and VAR have been a major talking point in Spanish football over the last few years, and especially so in recent months. Barcelona, Real Madrid and many other La Liga clubs have complained on the matter, and that is surely set to continue between now and the end of the season.
The Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) has been in the spotlight over the last 12 months, largely because of the ongoing Negreira case, which centres about Barcelona’s alleged relationship with Enriquez Negreira during his time as Vice-President of the CTA. The focus on the committee looks like increasing further because of a report just released by El Debate.
The report states that Medina Cantalejo, current president of the CTA, has been reported after being accused of manipulating VAR images. The complaint says that Cantalejo has been accused of concealing evidence “to harm Real Madrid”. In addition to Cantalejo, Carlos Clos Gomez and Santiago Jaime Latre have also been accused as part of this.
The report goes on to claim that the CTA has a secret annex room and parallel to the VOR room that is called the “operating room”. According to the complaint, from this location, instructions are given to the VAR and AVAR in dubious plays and against the provisions of the protocols established by the International Football Association Board (IFAB).
These accusations are very serious, and the CTA are likely to issue a response in the near future. Real Madrid may well look to address the situation in the coming days.
If true, those responsible need to go to jail and teams that benefitted need to be disclosed.