Espanyol file complaint against Barcelona and Robert Lewandowski
Espanyol believe that Robert Lewandowski was ineligible to play against them in the New Year’s Eve derby against Barcelona.
Espanyol warned that they wouldn’t back down when they publicly complained about a Madrid court issuing a temporary injunction against Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski’s three-match suspension. And although they earned a welcome draw in the New Year’s Eve derby against their city rivals at Camp Nou, they certainly aren’t. On Monday, Espanyol filed a complaint with the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) due to their belief that Lewandowski was fielded as an ineligible player against them, which could result in Los Pericos being awarded all three points and Barça being fined.
Espanyol: Barcelona starting Lewandowski was “a clear offence”
Espanyol believe that Lewandowski, who played the full 90 minutes of the clash, should have been serving the first game of a three-match ban after his sending-off against Osasuna in Barça’s last league fixture before the World Cup break. The club say that they notified referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz “in good faith” that the Polish striker had been named in the starting line-up before the game. A source close to Espanyol has told AS that that meant a clear offence had been committed, not only in relation to the club but also with regard to the competition as a whole, and they believe that an ordinary court intervening in a sporting matter “poses a risk to the essence of the competition and is based on a hasty resolution and clear legal mishaps.”
The same source was keen to highlight that their complaint was not an attack on Barcelona, who they say have the right to defend their legitimate interests, as do Espanyol. Los Pericos have also stressed that they would have acted in the exact same way regardless of the outcome of the match, having taken the decision to file the complaint shortly after the precautionary measure against Lewandowski’s suspension was issued.
The Spanish Competition Committee, the disciplinary body of the RFEF, held an extraordinary meeting on the morning of the derby but opted not to get involved in the matter, with the ruling having come from the Central Contentious Court in Madrid rather than a sporting body. Espanyol’s appeal means the RFEF will now have to take action, one way or another.
