Real Madrid star Fede Valverde has taken to social media to explain why he did not get involved in criticising referees. The Uruguayan was put up for press duties before their Champions League play-off return leg with Manchester City, but neglected to discuss officiating when asked about it.

Los Blancos are currently engaged in a war with the refereeing establishment in Spain, formally declared with a four-page letter to the President of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) Rafael Louzan. In it, they called the officiating corrupt, manipulated and filthy.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti continued his complaints from the weekend in his press conference, explaining that he felt Real Madrid were being clearly harmed by the referees. However Valverde was much more sanguine on the matter, noting that it was neither his place to judge officiating, and admitting they are human and therefore liable to make mistakes.

However little over an hour after the press duties had been concluded, Valverde took to Twitter/X to clarify his thoughts on the matter.

“I don’t want anyone to misunderstand me, but above all I want to clarify for our fans: if today I don’t talk about the refereeing we are suffering it is because I KNOW MYSELF, and I must focus on tomorrow.”

No quiero que me mal interprete nadie, pero sobre todo le quiero aclarar a nuestra afición; si hoy no hable de los arbitrajes que estamos sufriendo es porque ME CONOZCO, y debo centrarme en mañana.
Todo el mundo ha visto lo que nos está sucediendo en esta liga, y no lo olvido,…

— Fede Valverde (@fedeevalverde) February 18, 2025

“Everyone has seen what is happening to us in this league, and I don’t forget it, but now we have to focus on tomorrow, and I will be 100% as I have always been.”

This is the latest indication that Real Madrid are taking a unified line on criticising the refereeing in La Liga, with Ancelotti also ramping up his complaints in recent weeks. Referee Jose Luis Munuera Montero, who was heavily criticised over the weekend for his performance during Real Madrid’s 1-1 draw against Osasuna, received death threats over the weekend. The Referees Committee (CTA) have subsequently criticised the dangerous discourse, noting its violent consequences.