Florentino Perez is a tough nut and knows how to handle pressure

Failures in the La Liga, Champions League, exit of Zinedine Zidane, Sergio Ramos and the European Super League saga created enough pressure for Real Madrid and their boss Florentino Perez in the season of 2020-21.

At present, the leaked audios via the Spanish Media; has put the boss on the back foot and Perez is under pressure again – the going is getting tough for him, but when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

The Story

On July 13, 2021, Spanish Media leaked audio clips of Perez where he stated various insulting remarks towards some of the icons of Real Madrid.

Jose Antonio Abella has been the mastermind behind this.

The recordings, which have come to light in recent days via the newspaper El Confidencial, were of Perez criticizing various former players and coached at Real Madrid.

What do the leaked audio clips contain?

On Iker Casillas

The quotes were from 2006, like the previous ones, and have also been published previously but have resurfaced again now.

At the time, Casillas was the goalkeeper of Real Madrid and Perez on his way out as president.

“You could see the other 'keeper was better than Casillas,” said Perez, as per El Confidencial.

“You can tell when things aren't going so well with his girlfriend as well; he's absent [mentally].”

“He's like a child... he's like a lapdog, a puppet, something childlike.”

Despite a string of harsh comments relating to his ability, his height and his relationship, Perez insisted he got on well with the goalkeeper.

“I have, and people don't know this, I have a very good relationship with him,” said Perez.

“People think I don't like him, but the thing is I believe if he'd committed himself more he'd be the number one because, despite being a bit short, he has some exceptional qualities.”

“But take the game against Barcelona with LaLiga at stake, the one we won 4-2... that Friday he arrived late to training... he'd had an argument with his girlfriend, ridiculous stuff.”

The Real Madrid president had some words to say about said girlfriend as well and he didn't hold journalist Sara Carbonero in much esteem.

“This girl, I don't trust her one bit,” said Perez.

“This girl, these girls, you know what they're after...they go crazy for fame.”

On Raul Gonzalez

Along with Casillas, Perez harshly criticized another legend of Real Madrid – Raul Gonzalez.

“Casillas is not a Real Madrid standard goalkeeper, what can I say? He's not and never has been,” said Perez in comments published by El Confidencial.

“He has been a big failure of ours. The problem is people adore him, love him, talk to him, they defend him so much.”

“He is one of the biggest frauds and the other is Raul, the two biggest Real Madrid frauds are first Raul and second Casillas.”

These two club icons were singled out, but Perez also revealed a poor opinion of the players in general.

“The players are very selfish, you can't count on them for anything,” said Perez.

“If you do, you've made a mistake and they'll let you down, it's ridiculous.”

 On Vincente del Bosque

In 2006, Perez mocked Del Bosque for his lack of ability and laughed at the idea of him one day coaching the Spanish national team.

“He doesn't know how to coach, nor does he know about tactics. He's a fool,” said Perez.

“No one offers Vicente del Bosque work because they all know he's not a coach. The Del Bosque stuff is the biggest lie I've seen in my life.”

“Ask the Besiktas president [Yildirim Demiroren] what he felt. [Del Bosque] isn't a coach, [Jose Antonio] Camacho is.”

Perez went on to state that Del Bosque, who was Real Madrid's first-team head coach between 1999 and 2003, couldn't handle the stars in Los Blancos' dressing room.

“[Luis] Figo arrived and became close with Raul, and between them and [Fernando] Hierro they ran the squad.”

“Poor Vicente, he didn't belong there.”

“They say he'll take over the national team, that's just what they need. Del Bosque, you know?”

On Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho

The most recent quotes, dating from two conversations, the most recent in October 2012, published on Wednesday morning, see the Real Madrid president take aim at several of the Portuguese stars at the club.

The content of the leaked audio recordings, released once again by El Confidencial, includes some damning comments towards Ronaldo and Mourinho in particular in 2012 when both were at the club.

“[Ronaldo] is crazy. The guy is an idiot, he's sick,” said Perez.

“You think this guy is normal, but he's not. If he was, he wouldn't do all the things he does.”

“The last stupid thing, which everyone in the world saw... why do you think he'd do something so stupid?”

Perez also slammed both Ronaldo and Mourinho for having massive egos and being blinkered to reality.

“[Jorge] Mendes has no control over [Ronaldo] and it's the same with Mourinho - none at all,” said Perez.

“Even for interviews, they don't listen to him. These are two guys with terrible egos, spoilt the pair of them, who don't see the reality because they could both earn a lot more money if things were different.”

“They are both abnormal because we are talking about a lot of money in terms of image rights. And with that face they have, that challenging glare, the fact that no one likes them... if the publicity was different, everything changes.”

Furthermore, Ronaldo and Mourinho were not the only Portuguese that Perez had some choice comments for, with Fabio Coentrao also coming in for criticism.

“He’s a nut, that’s one of the effects of Real Madrid. He's another mindless one and Madrid eats guys like that,” said Perez.

“Right now, he's scared and Mourinho is an idiot. It's not that he doesn't want to play... Well, he's a little stupid, driving without a license.”

“The pressure has got to him and that's because he's sick but the other one doesn't care about that.”

Mourinho and Mesut Ozil's girlfriend

[Ozil] came here aged 21. He is third generation Turk and then he discovers Madrid. There was nothing, no Turks, dicks, third-generation or girlfriend. He sent his girlfriend away and changed his lifestyle, falling for an Italian model from Milan. 

He had a private jet, so he would fly out there, have sex and come back. Then one day, he annoyed Jose Mourinho, who jokingly said 'Hey Ozil, idiot, let me tell you something as if I were your father because this girl you're going out with has f**ked everyone at Inter and AC Milan, including the coaching staff of both teams.' [Ozil] ended up leaving her.

Florentino Perez's thoughts on Guti

He's a moron, his own worst enemy. He's a mug, like a goat.

Remembering the Galacticos' dressing room

Luis Figo is the one who pisses off the dressing room. He has been a son of a b**ch, like Raul. The two bad eggs were Figo and Raul. The best was Zinedine Zidane, without a doubt.

Hitting out at the legends of the Quinta del Buitre era

"These guys think they can live off Real Madrid until they die. It's shameful, but that's how it is. It's all of them. Buitre, Sanchis, Michel, Martin Vazquez..."

More criticism of Michel

"He is a fraudster, a terrible coach. He was coach of Castilla. I think it was Michel who forced Juan Mata out, to make space for his son."

On Jorge Mendes

Staying with the theme, the Real Madrid chief also had something to say about Jorge Mendes' role in Pepe's transfer to Los Blancos in 2007, which came during the presidency of Ramon Calderon.

“That the 30 million [euros] have left here and arrived there, no doubt, but now you have to look at the bank it's ended up in,” said Perez.

“He does that with Jorge Mendes, the representative of Porto's president [Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa], with him everything is odd. Mendes pops up and he'd pay him as he's the Porto president's alibi.”

“He and Mendes got money from the Russian with the Mourinho deal and the [Ricardo] Carvalho and [Paulo] Ferreira ones... and that money they take it to Switzerland. Someone mixed up in all this should get mad and they have to give us a clue about that account in Switzerland.”

Perez defends himself

Under pressure, Perez has given his statement and defended.

Jose Antonio Abellan - the journalist at the centre of the leaked audio recordings storm surrounding Real Madrid president Florentino Perez - is said to have demanded 10 million euros from the club in exchange for deleting the files.

And with Perez preparing to sue Abellan and the newspaper - as MARCA has reported - the case has taken a new turn, with the latest revelations coming from Carlos Bustillo on Wednesday night's El Transistor programme on Onda Cero.

“The blackmail offer was made in the Combarro Restaurant in Madrid, and Real Madrid didn't accept it,” Bustillo said.

Present at the meeting was said to be Eduardo Fernandez de Blas, Real Madrid's vice-president.

“The quotes published are from conversations secretly recorded by [the journalist] Jose Antonio Abellan, who has been trying without success to sell them for years,” said Perez.

“It is surprising now, despite the time which has passed, that they have been picked up today by the newspaper El Confidencial.”

“They are isolated phrases taken out of the wide context in which they were spoken.”

"We have to win the battle of MARCA and Television Espanola [TVE]," Florentino Perez is heard saying in the clips, which have once again been published by El Confidencial.

“And with that isolate [them], not El Pais, which does not behave badly, but [then-director of AS, Alfredo] Relano and [the host of El Transistor on Onda Cero, Jose Ramon] De la Morena.”

“El Rondo [a programme on TVE] will no longer exist. If it's for months, it'll be killed off in no time. If it's for seasons, we'll have to wait for the summer.”

“Luis Fernandez is a Real Madrid fanatic. He already took away Roberto Gomez's contract, just to make a point. El Rondo will no longer exist. It's going to be a Real Madrid programme by [Antonio Garcia] Ferreras.”

“We have nothing left but MARCA. Now we have to take MARCA, mate,” said Florentino Perez.

“Because with MARCA and Television Espanola [TVE] it's all over. They no longer have anyone and the others will be ashamed to be left alone. Because right now MARCA is with them. It's frightening.”

There were also clips relating to the Real Madrid president's relationship with the Prisa Group, which has El Pais, AS and Cadena SER amongst its holdings.

“We have to unite the rest. Everyone against Prisa,” stated Florentino Perez.

“And what about [AS journalist Tomas] Roncero? If someone says something to Roncero, he crumples.”

“The fact is that in the demand that is necessary to [act] now once the secrecy of summary proceedings is lifted.”

“We have to go after him. We have to go after Roncero criminally.”

Conclusion

The season has not started yet, and Real Madrid discover themselves at the centre of controversy, but such things are nothing new for them because there are people around who always target the best in the world and Perez knows how to handle such matters. Perez is a tough nut and the world must realize this very well.

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer as CSdesk on 16/07/2021 Florentino Perez is a tough nut and knows how to handle pressure

Thank You

Faisal Caesar