Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez is getting hammered in the Spanish media for screwing up the David de Gea transfer and has responded with a 10 point PR statement where he tries and lays the blame for the del fallen apart at the feet of Manchester United.
The Real Madrid statement, released on Tuesday said:
However, the transfer never went through and Madrid have now issued a statement claiming that they did everything possible to make it happen.
“After the events of yesterday [Monday] in relation to the alleged hiring of David de Gea player, Real Madrid wishes to state:
“1. Manchester United didn’t open any path of negotiation for the registration rights to David De Gea until yesterday morning.
“2. Real Madrid, despite the difficulties associated with completing a deal of this type on the final day of registration, accepted the initiating of these conversations.
“3. When Manchester United entered into these negotiations yesterday morning they did so subject to being able to reach an agreement with Real Madrid player Keylor Navas, in order that he would join the British club from this season, and informed that they were in contact with the representatives of said player.
“4. Real Madrid and Manchester United reach a rapid agreement on the transfer of both players. After the drafting of the relevant contractual documents required and in order to proceed with sufficient time to process both the FIFA Transfer Matching System (TMS) entry time and LFP regristration, Real Madrid forwarded the contracts to Manchester United at 13:39 Spanish time.
“5. Manchester United sent its comments on the contracts eight hours later, at 21:43 Spanish time, including minor modifications. Not being relevant, all changes were accepted immediately by Real Madrid, with the intention to register the players with both TMS and the LFP.
“6. After the signatures of the players De Gea and Keylor Navas, Real Madrid sent the English club said contracts signed at 23:32 Spanish time. We then awaited the receipt of the final documents signed by Manchester United .
“7. Manchester United reached a final agreement with the representatives of Keylor Navas at 23:53 Spanish time and it was at that time when the contracts were sent to the player to be signed.
“8. Manchester United entered the TMS data from the operation of David de Gea, not those of Keylor Navas, at 00:00 Spanish time, simultaneously referring to the signed Real Madrid contracts. Real Madrid received the full documentation at 00:02 and tried to access the TMS but it was already closed.
“9. At 00:26 Spanish time, the computer system of Fifa TMS makes an invitation to Real Madrid to fill out the data for the player David de Gea, given that the deadline for registration in England remains open to this day [Tuesday]. Real Madrid decided to refer the contract to the LFP, knowing that the deadlines had expired.
“10. In short, Real Madrid has done everything necessary, and at all times, to implement these two transfers.”
Left unsaid by Perez, was that despite tapping up de Gea for the better part of the past year, Real Madrid did not submit an offer for the United goalkeeper until yesterday.
There was a poll on a Spanish website yesterday asking Madrid fans if they were in favor of the de Gea/Navas deal and 80% were against it, leading some to speculate that Perez scuppered the deal at the last moment as it would have been unpopular with the fans.
Regardless, we have the two biggest clubs in the world with egg on their face, their images tarnished, and with two unhappy goalkeepers.
Real Madrid have to make up with Navas, who would have doubled his salary by moving to United, while de Gea and van Gaal have to come to some sort of agreement so that the Spaniard can get back to being United’s No.1
