The referees of the King’s Cup final, both on the pitch and at VAR, came to the press room to answer questions from journalists.
José María Sánchez Martínez will be the referee for the Copa final between Real Madrid and Osasuna. His first final. “It’s a great moment of happiness. I went through all the categories and the final is a dream. It was a hobby and now the dream that I never thought I would realize is coming true. This day will be very special for me, with my family in the stands.”
The hands and the doubts that exist: “The first thing to do is to criticize yourself and we do that every week. We try to do things as well as possible and that’s why we study all decisions. We know that we can do better , but there is also an important work to be done so that we all have the same vision of what a hand is or not. This work of education is ours. There are situations that are either black or white , which are not debatable. The problem is the gray situations where there are thousands of interpretations. In our debates we try to put an end to the doubts, but it is not always possible. We are the first to do our own self-criticism, but I would also like to ask you and all the players not to turn good decisions into mistakes. It’s not good for football and it breeds confusion.”
🗣️ Sánchez Martínez: “I want to point out that we are the first to criticize ourselves about the hands”.
➡️ “From the @CTARFEF
we put pedagogy and work, but we also ask that successes do not become mistakes”.#ArbitrationRFEF
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#LaCopaMola🏆 |
#CopaDelRey pic.twitter.com/KkjBoc0X8X— RFEF (@rfef)
May 5, 2023
Real’s refereeing treatment, which Courtois believes is different than for other teams: “I respect these opinions, but I have nothing to say. We try to apply the rules of the game. Nothing else. The goal is fair play.”
Refereeing in Spain or in European competitions: “Few differences compared to Europe. We try to have as much information as possible on all the teams, both in Europe and in Spain. We study everything related to the teams, the dynamics of each and we apply it. We also did it for the Copa del Rey final.”
Vinicius and his way of understanding football: “I don’t talk about the players and my refereeing practice. I’ll be mindful of everything and take whatever decisions I think are right. We’re here to protect the players and make sure everything is fair. We’re criticized for the number of red cards given in Spain but it’s a sign of the protection we have for the health of the players.”
The Negreira affair and its possible implication: “This is a legal proceeding and there is not much to comment on. The honor of the referees is above all. There is no coercion. We were right and we we were wrong,” said Sánchez Martínez. “We are the first interested in getting everything resolved and the sooner the better,” Latre said.
Jaime Latre spoke about his work at VAR:
“I have a very good relationship with José María and my mission is to try to help him. That people can hear the audios of our exchanges in the match? It is not a question for us. There is no nothing to hide, but it’s not up to us. I don’t know if it would help.”
The publication of an anti-corruption investigation: “It has been shown to have no truth and go no further. It was done to harm. We shouldn’t be looking for trouble where there is none.”
Sanchez Martinez added: “It’s lamentable. One more example of what I say. I erased it from my hard drive. We are used to such acts. We are not from space. We are fathers, we have families and we are referees. We have to be tactful and professional.”