Real ref gets death threatsThe referee who gave Racing Santander two penalties in their 2-1 win over Real Madrid says he has received death threats.
Real were leading 1-0 on Saturday before Javier Turienzo Alvarez gave Racing a penalty following what appeared to be a good tackle by Mahamadou Diarra on Lionel Scaloni.
Then, after sending-off Ivan Helguera for a second yellow card, Fabio Cannavaro pulled down giant Serb striker Nikola Zigic, leading to the awarding of a second spot-kick, which defender Garay duly converted. Alvaro Mejia was sent-off for Madrid in injury-time.
"I have received more than 50 phone calls at my house with death threats against me and my family," Turienzo Alvarez said in an interview with Punto Radio. "I have a daughter of six years old who returned from the park yesterday crying. She said: 'the children tell me you ruined things for Real'... and it hurts me to the core."
Spanish sports daily Marca - who are vehemently pro-Real Madrid - ran their front page with a picture of the referee and the headline "this is the face of the man who cost us the league," following-up the next day with another picture of Alvarez and the quote "I didn't kill anybody" and the accusation that he was making himself the victim.
And Turienzo Alvarez implied that the resultant death threats were provoked by said media coverage following the match:
"I don't want to apportion blame but a newspaper front page on Sunday was hurtful with a picture of me in a target and a message 'go for him.' I don't think this is fair," he said. "When I left the hotel on Sunday some 30 or 40 people crowded round the car threateningly with the newspaper in their hands saying bad things. One day something will happen and then everyone will be sorry."
Real sporting director Predrag Mijatovic had said after the match: "We are very angry. Some very strange things have happened and mistakes that cannot be forgiven. It isn't normal that they do what have done to us."
Turienzo Alvarez countered by saying: "There is nothing strange going on. Everyone makes mistakes from players, to directors, to referees."
Real themselves have attempted to distance themselves from the threats, saying on their website:
"We consider it intolerable that the criticisms of a particular refereeing performance, that could be perfectly legitimate, can be converted into insults and threats that affect not only the referee but more seriously his family.
"These attitudes are completely unacceptable and are not shared by Real Madrid."
The first penalty was a dive by Scaloni after Diarra cleanly won the ball, although from the angle Alvarez stood and the crowd of players in his way he could be forgiven for the error, while the second was a clear two-armed tug on Zigic by Cannavaro.
მსაჯს რომელმაც თქვენი და რასინგის თამაში იმსაჯა მოკვლით ემუქრებიან , ურეკავენ და ა.შ.
This post has been edited by lycoperdale genus on 17 Apr 2007, 20:03
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REAL MADRID Fan Club, ყველაზე მაგარი კლუბის ფან-კლუბი, part 7
