Cordoba. The Spanish Federation is in an open conflict with the stars of his country.
Something created chaos ahead of the international match against Sweden, but Barcelona star Fridolina Rulfo understands her teammates.
– I support them one hundred percent. I would do the same if I were in their situation.
What would be a perfect test of Sweden before the toilet next summer would be something completely different.
Because as the blue and yellow train in peace and quiet in scorching hot Cordoba with palm trees lining the pitch, a perfect storm is blowing around the Spain national team.
Very sad that he has come this far. There are players who want to play for their national team and now they have chosen to strike and not participate. I hope they can find a solution, says Fridolina Rulfo.
The conflict in Spain has been raging for a while. But only when the Spanish federation publicly announced last week that 15 players opted to boycott the national team did the crisis turn into a full-blown crisis.
Players don’t want to talk about conflict
“I’m now familiar with the topic because it’s my teammates and we’re talking about it, but out of respect for them I feel I don’t want to go into details, but I feel they can have a say in it,” Rulfo says.
The players themselves did not want to talk about the conflict. They wanted to keep everything internal, but the federation chose to come up with the fact that many stars sent emails that they did not want to be in the national team as long as the climate did not change.
The union’s choice to provide information and how they handle the situation surprises Fridolina Rulfo.
– I don’t understand that you do it this way and exclude people instead of trying to debate and come up with a solution. It’s some of the best players in Spain and Europe in general who are left out of this squad because no solutions can be found.
According to Spanish media, the boycott is related to the authoritarian leadership style of Confederation captain Jorge Velda, that there are monotonous and monotonous training sessions and that players are under pressure to play despite injuries.
– It’s sad. I see it takes energy although maybe they are trying to keep their spirits high. As a player, I would have been very sad and very disappointed in the federation had I been in their situation. You can see that in them, it is clear to them that there is a lot of anxiety, but at the same time they hope that in the end they will come up with something.
“Support them one hundred percent”
When asked what the Sweden star would do if she wore her teammates’ shoes, there is no doubt.
– Certainly, I support them one hundred percent. I would do the same if I were in their situation.
Do you think there is a risk that we will not see these players in the World Cup next year?
– It’s entirely up to the federation, I don’t know how they think, but I think the players will hold up.
Ahead of this summer’s European Cup, Spain has been mentioned as a potential wild card to challenge for the gold medal, and Rulfo’s Barcelona have been named in recent years as the best women’s team in the world, but the Swede is concerned about how that struggle could unfold. affect the future.
– I don’t think this is a positive development to be honest. Something has to happen, things have to change in order for women’s football to grow in Spain, and then it’s not just about the national team, but the league as well.
What improvements would you like to see in the league?
– We’ve been talking about it for many years. The league is now professional, but things that the league would have gone through to become professional, for example, will not be played on artificial turf. still does. There has also been talk of downsizing the league, but there are still 16 teams left. And now we also have a goal from the referee before our first match.
– Things are not one hundred percent.
Sweden faces Spain in a training match in Cordoba on Friday.