Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus 'Paralysed' By 'Strange' Super League Approach, Says UEFA Chief Aleksander Ceferin

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin on Monday said that Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus have paralysed themselves with an approach as strange as the Super League. Earlier this year in April, there was a controversial league formed by top clubs coming together from Premier League, La Liga and Serie A. Titled 'Super League', it was a breakaway tournament against the UEFA competitions. However, with protests from fans across the globe, nine out of the founding clubs were forced to withdraw from the tournament. European Super League: Juventus, Real Madrid, Barcelona Hit out at UEFA.

Despite this, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus continued to be part of the rebel league and have been threatened with sanctions by the UEFA. Ceferin, who has publicly criticised this new competition said, "They paralysed themselves with the approach they took," he said, adding, "It's strange to read press releases that the three clubs out of thousands of clubs think their idea will save football and nobody else likes it."

It was earlier reported that the players of these three clubs would be banned from participating in international competitions. Juventus also has been threatened of being removed from Serie A by Gabriele Gravina, the head of the Italian Football Association. Ceferin insisted that UEFA would conduct an investigation before they give any formal punishment on these clubs, whatsoever.

"Our disciplinary committee is independent so the moment they start to work on a case, I don't have a reach or information there," he said, adding, "I don't know when, if or how the sanctions would be. For me what is strange is that you publish you are still part of the Super League and then you send a letter applying to play in the Champions League. So you are in Super League but play Champions League. It's quite hard to understand what they mean. They should call us, send us a letter, ask for a meeting."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 31, 2021 10:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).