Sports

Referendum Blues: A tale of Barcelona Fc and Real Madrid Fc

By Muyiwa Olayinka

Real Madrid Player, Benzema
Suarez, Barcelona Player

If someone like Nigerian prophets always do, predicted that Barcelona Fc could play a football match in an empty stadium, many would have said it is not possible.

The reason is not far fetched. Barcelona Fc is one of the successful football club in the whole world. The club is wealthy and paraded galaxy of stars like the “merciless” Lionel Messi, Suarez etc. Barcelona played on Sunday, September 1st 2017 in a closed stadium without not a single fan cheering them to victory. The Santiago Bernabeu and Camp Nou were worlds apart on Sunday. Real Madrid played to a tumultuous crowd filled with fans.

Barcelona FC played its Spanish league game against Las Palmas in a completely empty stadium amid horrific violence in Catalonia. The football club had openly backed an independence referendum, and criticised the Spanish government for trying to stop the vote by force – a move that has left hundreds injured in the state. Its president said that their decision to play the match behind closed doors was made by the club as a way to protest against the government’s actions.

Barca had wanted to postpone their match against Las Palmas amid safety concerns, but were told by Spain’s Professional Football League (LFP) that they would face losing six points if they failed to go ahead with the fixture.

Making a statement of its own, Las Palmas’ players had the Spanish flag embroidered onto their shirts ahead of the match. Barcelona won 3-0.

However, the mood at the Bernabeu was rather different. Up against Espanyol, the only professional Catalan club that has stayed quiet in the lead-up to the referendum, Real Madrid’s fans brought Spain flag and sang songs in support of their nation.
Before the match, supporters were handed out cards with the message “Todos somos España” (“We are all Spain”) and those were held up in the 12th minute amid chants of “Viva España!” (“Long live Spain!”)
Those went on throughout a match in which Madrid did not play well and, at times, it appeared that the team’s problems at home may continue. Prior to this game, Zinedine Zidane’s side had failed to win any of their Liga fixtures at the Santiago Bernabeu so far this term.
Two very good goals by Isco made sure that Los Blancos did end up with a win, however, although Espanyol came close to scoring on several occasions in something of a subdued showing from the home team.
Hundreds of people were hurt in Catalunya after heavy-handed tactics from police forces sent in from all over Spain to halt the referendum for independece, considered illegal by the Spanish state. So far more than 800 are injured in the referendum induced clashes
The violent scenes shocked the nation, and after Barca beat Las Palmas 3-0 in front of an empty Camp Nou, there were protests all over the country, including a massive demonstration in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol.
There is no love lost between Barca and Madrid, of course, but supporters of Los Blancos were keen to show their colours on Sunday. And despite the unseemly scenes in Catalunya earlier in the day provoked by the police, the message from madridistas was clear — they are Spanish and proud of it.

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