Real president hits out after coach’s sacking

– Julen Lopetegui (right) said this week that being sacked as Spanish coach was the “saddest day” of his life since the death of his mother and defended his move to Real Madrid, saying it was done in an “absolutely honest way”.

Spain’s World Cup preparations were thrown into turmoil on Wednesday as the Spanish Football Federation sacked Lopetegui after Real Madrid confirmed he would take over at the Bernabeu for the next three seasons.

Spain’s players reportedly resisted his sacking, which came as they were due to face European champions Portugal in Sochi last

Madrid

night before taking on Iran and Morocco in Group B.

Lopetegui said he wished federation chief Luis Rubiales “had handled things in another way” as he was officially unveiled as Real’s new coach at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

“Yesterday was the saddest day of my life since the death of my mother. But today is the happiest day of my life,” Lopetegui said as he fought back tears.

“We are convinced we acted in an absolutely honest and clear way.”

Rubiales said the federation was informed of Lopetegui’s move just “five minutes” before Real released its press statement announcing his arrival.

But Real Madrid president Florentino Perez called the Spanish football federation’s reaction to the club’s signing of Lopetegui “disproportionate, unfair and without precedent in the world of football in similar cases”.

Perez also lashed out at what he called “an absurd reaction of misplaced pride” on the part of Rubiales, and said the club had issued the press statement as an “act of transparency” and to avoid the news from leaking out.

The federation named Fernando Hierro, 50, as an emergency replacement at the World Cup despite having only one season’s experience in the Spanish second division with Real Oviedo.

But Spanish captain Sergio Ramos said there were no divisions following the decision to let go of Lopetegui, under whom the 2010 World Cup winners had been unbeaten in two years.

“There are no cracks. We are all individuals and we all think differently, but the collective idea is the same – we are here to go for the World Cup,” said Ramos, who will play under Lopetegui at club level next season. –