Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea, international referee, attends AS from his home, where he spends the quarantine with special care, since he was the last referee to whistle Espanyol, with several positives in his squad.
How are you living this state of alarm?
It is an uncomfortable, exceptional situation and we have to adapt. Obligations must be met and prohibitions respected in order to return to normal life as soon as possible. In my 34 years of life I had never experienced this situation. Now the important thing is the health of people and those who are risking their lives to end this situation. They are true heroes.
He was the last to whistle for Espanyol and a week later there were several positives for coronavirus.
I hope they recover soon and there are no serious consequences. Those of the arbitration quartet that were there have had no symptoms. I am at home with my family, with my son and my wife, who is about to give birth. We are taking great care of her.
Despite the halt and precautions, they continue to train individually. And the Arbitration Committee is attentive to its form.
They send us protocols to follow and who to report having symptoms. They are concerned about our physical condition as there are restrictions when it comes to training. Luckily, I have a strength machine and a spinning bike so I don't lose fitness with cardio.
Do they control their weight?
We have to report how we have slept, how much we weigh, what pulsations we have when we get up … These are questions to draw conclusions at a medical level and improve.
And on a theoretical level?
We have an online platform and we continue with talks to improve our performances in the field and in the VOR. It is used to analyze the plays that happen every day and exceptional situations. We see, analyze and discuss them. They put us exams of the rules of the game and video analysis.
Will you be in a position to be able to referee after so long standing?
We have to be prepared in case we have to whistle almost every 72 hours and avoid injury. Both the referees and the players. We are all athletes and the physical demand is very high. None of us will have the same physical form when we return. It is like when you are injured and you return to the field, you can be well but you do not have that competition tone.
The League will surely resume behind closed doors.
Like the whole world of football, I think the more spectators there are, the better. You live differently.
How can arbitration be improved?
Not that I consider myself a footballer, but I think like them. It would humanize the figure of the referee with the player. Be closer without losing, of course, authority. There are moments when everyone knows where to be. We cannot allow disrespect. But sometimes you have to empathize with certain situations. It is a very important aspect also for reading the game.
Mateu stands out a little for that, he is one of the ones who talks the most to the players.
Mateu is an excellent referee. It is at an extraordinary level and is a benchmark at national and European level. We have great referees, like Del Cerro and Gil Manzano. They are elite referees. Each with its personality. We all have good things to contribute to others and also defects.
The new rule of hands is controversial. There will be those who shoot at them to get a penalty.
We will have to be prepared if that happens to see if it is a voluntary action and if it meets the requirements to be called. We have no other choice. My President has said it, it is a complex matter and with so many interpretations that it will be very difficult to put everyone in agreement.
Her father was a referee.
To be realistic, he was not very funny that I continued on his way. It was my debut, a Levante-Celta, and he had to leave to rest from his nerves. He doesn't see me on TV and after every game I call him to tell him that everything has gone well. He is very nervous.