Real Madrid president, Florentino Perez says
that Mesut Ozil asked for a transfer request to leave Real Madrid, and expressed
that Gerard Pique is wrong in his assertion about how the club bought Gareth
Bale.
Los
Blancos’ late activity in the transfer window has continued to attract
discussion in recent weeks, with Ozil’s departure to Arsenal on the final day
of the market having upset fans.
However,
the club’s President has made clear today that the situation was aided by the
player’s desire to leave.
“Ozil
asked to leave the club and nobody here should be upset about it,” Perez
commented to Bernabeudigital.com.
“He
could not stand the pressure of Madrid.”
The
President also reflected on Barcelona defender Pique’s recent comments that Madrid have
been able to fund a number of transfers in recent years with assistance from
national bank Bankia.
“What
Pique has said is not true. He is a good guy and we should not focus on this
point.
“The
club paid for the player, with no assistance from Bankia or any other financial
institution.”
Perez,
who will face shareholders at their annual meeting this weekend, reflected on
the decision in 2010 to bring in Jose Mourinho, in light of a difficult final
year last season.
“We
had to make a strong point to break the sporting situation with Barca and we
got Mourinho.
“He
is a Coach who has helped us, we have taken a quantum leap thanks to him,
especially in Europe.
“I
really like him and he did great things for this club. His opinions and methods
of working are correct.”
Concerning
Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas situation, he said “We have got two of the
best goalkeepers in the world and both are from our youth set-up. This is a
privilege.”
Madrid
continue to draw up plans to redevelop the Santiago Bernabeu. “It
will be at a cost of €300m-€400m and will pay out €80m a year. Funding will be
provided through a loan, but season tickets will not increase in price and in
the coming weeks the winning design will be announced.”
