The collaboration between Gerard Piqué, FC Barcelona player, and Luis Rubialespresident of the Royal Spanish Football Federation, went further than awarding the Spanish Super Cup to Saudi Arabia in 2019. According to El Confidencial this Friday, Gerard Piqué forwarded an audio of a conversation with Sergio Ramos, then a Real Madrid footballer and captain of the National Team, in which they talked about the battle between the highest federative president and David Aganzopresident of the main players’ union, the Association of Spanish Soccer Players (AFE).
After the audios published in which Rubiales and Gerard Piqué spoke of seeking AFE’s support for the Federation’s calendar proposal, El Confidencial reveals how Piqué gathered some useful information for Luis Rubiales in order to get David Aganzo out of AFE. He wrote to Sergio Ramos in May 2020, when he was still captain of Real Madrid, to find out his opinion about the union leader and asked for support for the federative president. Ramos made it clear that he had no intention of making a statement. “Geri, what’s going on? The issue… Luque has also written to me now that I have a very good relationship with him. And of course, that’s what I told him, I know the relationship that Rubi and Aganzo have had. They were intimate. Brothers. To go everywhere together and so on. And what happens? When Rubi presented himself for the presidency of the Federation he put the other in the AFE. What’s the matter? That each one at the end when he sees himself in a good position and with power because he wants to command in his own way. What’s the matter? That Rubi had three or four there in the AFE who told him everything while Aganzo was still president. Then this one (Aganzo) took them and threw them out. From there, the war began because Rubi wants to rule in the Federation and in the AFE”assured the Sevillian.
This, he expresses in the audio, considers that it is a sensitive issue despite showing his disagreement with Aganzo for an episode in which he does not provide more detail. “Then this is also a very sensitive issue, Geri. With Aganzo, obviously, I have already told you. The relationship was correct and professional for belonging to the union and defending the interests of the players, but I don’t have anything with him either. After the ugly thing he did to me, I have put the cross on him. I would have no problem signing him, but I believe that this is not our issue, that this is an issue… Are we asking for the resignation of an AFE president who is really moving it is Rubiales? I think that here it is a topic of theirs so that they can solve it among themselves and that it takes us a little on the sidelines. But, anyway, I don’t know … “he sentenced in his voice message.
This message reached the phone of the Barcelona center-back and he transmitted it to Rubiales along with another voice message of his own. “Rubi, this is a message that Ramos sent me. Keep it for yourself. Please keep it confidential”, prompted him about Ramos’ forwarded message. Next, the center-back told the president the reason for the question to Sergio Ramos: trying to convince Messi to get involved. “The issue is complicated because Leo… Damn, he doesn’t want to lead any of this, any of these movements because he doesn’t want to get involved and doesn’t understand the circumstances of it either. She has told me, hell, she talks to those from Madrid to see what they say to this. And of course, Sergio sent me this and now I’m a bit pff… I’m going to explain it to Leo tomorrow, but I’ve talked to him on the phone, I’ve told him about the background, and so on. The guy was very grateful, but from there to getting into something like that and leading it alone, I don’t see it. Another thing is that there is Madrid, Atlético de Madrid…”assured.
At the end of this, he put himself at his disposal in case he could be useful in some other way. “I don’t know what I can do about it. I don’t know if you can talk to Sergio, but just so you know where he stands. That’s why he sent you the audio, okay? Let’s talk whenever you want.” It ended in his voice mail.
El Confidencial also publishes the responses of Rubiales, who summoned Piqué to a conversation later, although he pointed out that probing Ramos at that time was perhaps not the right thing to do. “This letter is not for today, it’s for a couple of days. Do nothing, we’ll talk later. A hug!” She wrote to him in the first responses.
The president answered him more clearly later. “You don’t need to send me anything because now wasn’t the time to talk to Sergio in my opinion, but don’t worry. We’ll talk tonight, monster. A hug!”, he specified before agreeing between the two to call each other later during the night of December 5, 2020.
