Barcelona lodge complaint over ex-Madrid duo´s Neymar comments

Barcelona have approached the Spanish government’s Sports Council (CSD) to open proceedings against former Real Madrid players Manuel Sanchis and Poli Rincon over their comments about Neymar.

Working as sports pundits on radio network La Cadena COPE, Sanchis and Rincon “publicly and repeatedly justified the act of aggression that the Real Madrid player Isco committed against the FC Barcelona player Neymar”, according to a statement on the Barcelona website.

The comments came after Isco was sent off for a late tackle on Neymar during the closing stages of Barcelona’s 4-0 La Liga win at the Santiago Bernabeu earlier this month.

Neymar scored his team’s third goal in the rout and Barcelona have approached the Anti-Violence Commission, an affiliate organisation of the CSD, with their complaint.

Despite being given the opportunity to condemn Isco’s actions, the Barcelona statement said that Sanchis told the Tiempo de Juego programme: “Neymar is going over the line, he isn’t getting [hit] enough.”

Rincon added: “If I am there, I hit him [Neymar], there should be no doubt that I hit him; me and anyone else.”

Barcelona’s statement concluded: “FC Barcelona considers these statements to be an invitation to violence and therefore asks the Anti-Violence Commission to act.”