Mbappe Vinicius and Konate hide Real Madrid Ceuta message
Before Real Madrid's away match against Elche on Tuesday, players Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior, and Ibrahima Konate drew criticism by rolling up their pre-game T-shirts to obscure a message supporting the people of Ceuta. The Spanish autonomous city on the North African coast has recently faced a severe migration crisis. While both teams walked onto the pitch at the Martinez Valero stadium wearing white shirts featuring the slogan "Todos somos caballas" which translates to "We are all Ceutans", the three players chose to roll their shirts up to their chests, hiding parts of the initiative.
Javier Tebas criticizes the players actions
The actions of the trio did not go unnoticed and quickly sparked sharp criticism from La Liga president Javier Tebas. Speaking to reporters after the incident, Tebas expressed his clear disapproval, stating that choosing to wear the shirt halfways is entirely equivalent to not wearing it at all. Furthermore, the La Liga president confirmed that the initiative was originally proposed by a group of entrepreneurs coming from the Valencia region, and that it had received full official approval from La Liga, emphasizing it was not a political demonstration.
Context of the Ceuta support initiative
This gesture was part of a wider wave of solidarity organized for Ceuta following a major migration wave that saw thousands of individuals crossing the border from neighboring Morocco. Official figures from the mayor of Ceuta indicated that at least 72000 migrants crossed the border between July 30 and July 31, with dozens of lives tragically lost during the crossings. Real Madrid had previously demonstrated their support prior to their Champions League fixture against Inter Milan at the Santiago Bernabeu on September 8, where supporters displayed dedicated cards in the stands.
Match outcome and next fixture
On the pitch, the pre-match controversy preceded a dramatic encounter as Real Madrid secured a hard-fought 3-2 victory against Elche, recovering after squandering a two-goal advantage thanks to a stoppage-time winner scored by Carlos Espi, while Kylian Mbappe also found the back of the net during the match. Real Madrid will look to maintain their strong momentum in their upcoming fixtures as the season continues to unfold across domestic and European competitions.
Photo : Bryan Berlin — CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
