La Liga president Javier Tebas maintained a diplomatic stance regarding who he wants to win in this weekend’s El Classico fixture. However, the self-proclaimed Real Madrid fan did little to hide his allegiances. It is public knowledge that Tebas is a Real Madrid fan outside of his day job as the helm of La Liga. Nonetheless, his neutral response seems to be an attempt to calm critics ahead of the fixture.
There have been growing complaints, especially in the Catalunya region, that have accused that the league is becoming more and more biased in favour of Real Madrid. Tebas’ diplomatic response could indeed be attributed to these allegations.
According to Marca, the president was attending a Microsoft event where he said, "I want the Classico to be a big party for all of La Liga to benefit from. Today I won't say who I want to win, you already know who.”
He further added how the winner of the El Classico could be significant in the La Liga title race although he explicitly dodged questions on which club he favours.
"The winner will be important in the La Liga title race. I've said on other occasions who I want that to be but today is not the day for doing so."
The 54-year-old Costa Rican had previously mentioned that he has been a Los Blancos fan since his younger days. In an interview with AS last year, he had said, “If I say I don't support [Madrid], then that would be hypocritical and I would be painted as a liar. And I certainly don't like to be called a liar.
“Imagine if I said that I loved all teams, and then it came out that I supported Madrid since I was a boy, went to 27 Clasicos in the past, that I celebrated Madrid wins with friends in a bar. I prefer to call it as it is."
Tebas seemed more focused on presenting the new global agreement with Microsoft. He also cited a desire to increase the league’s impact on social networking sites with the help of the multinational technology company.
Real Madrid, who lead the La Liga table with 33 points from 13 matches, host Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday. Barcelona, who are bolstered by the return of Andres Iniesta from injury, would be looking to reduce the six-point deficit with their fierce rivals.
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