"Noval insisted that referees on the field were largely unaffected by any potential irregularities. "I never received any directive, nor intention, nor anything similar," he explained. He acknowledged that while there may have been unusual circumstances, they did not influence refereeing decisions: "Is there something strange? Yes. But for us on the pitch, it did not affect us at all.""
"Noval described it as "relative." While the ex-vice president could adjust a "corrective index" that impacted referee evaluations and career progression, Noval emphasized that direct instructions for specific matches were never given. "You could favor someone slightly by choosing a more permissive referee, less permissive... but beyond that, direct influence, saying 'in this match you have to,' really, no," he noted."
"Noval also shed light on the role of Javier Enríquez, Negreira's son, who acted as a sporting coach for referees. "The only thing we had related to Negreira was some talks from his son, who was a fantastic coach," Noval said, describing pre-match discussions as light and motivational rather than manipulative."
On-field referees received no directives or intentions to influence match outcomes during the period in question. Irregularities existed but did not affect match decisions made on the pitch. A corrective index could be adjusted and had potential impact on referee evaluations and career progression. Direct instructions for specific matches were not issued to officials. Pre-match talks by a sporting coach focused on motivation and technical guidance rather than manipulation. Some clubs provided gifts or gestures to officials, ranging from small tokens to more valuable items, without evidence of direct match interference.
Read at Barca Blaugranes
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]