Flick and Simeone question LaLiga's floods call
Barcelona is in high spirits ahead of the derby against Espanyol, but Hansi Flick does not think LaLiga matches should be played this weekend with a flooding catastorophe continuing to unfold in the Valencia region, and Atletico Madrid counterpart Diego Simeone agrees.
Barca thrashed Real Madrid 4-0 at Santiago Bernabeu last weekend to establish a six-point lead in LaLiga but its city rival Espanyol is 20 points behind and languishing in 17th place, a point above the relegation zone.
Yet Flick feels it is wrong that LaLiga is playing on in the wake of the flash floods that have devastated regions of eastern Spain, killing more than 200 people with many missing also.
Madrid's game against Valencia was postponed, but most other fixtures in Spain's top tier are going ahead.
"If it were me, I might [suspend LaLiga] because it is an incredible tragedy for Valencia and Spain as a whole," Flick said.
"We have spoken with Ferran [Torres] who is from the area, and it is not easy to decide whether the game should be played or not.
"It is a tragedy. It was something similar in Germany three years ago, it is horrible. We will do everything we can to help. The rest is for LaLiga to decide."
Flick was not the only high-profile name to question LaLiga's decision making on the matter, with Atletico coach Simeone also of the same mind.
"It doesn't make any sense," Simeone said his side's home game against Las Palmas.
"What is happening is very hard; it is very moving to see the people who went out on the streets to help, who with a shovel and their tools are trying to collaborate and that speaks very well of the country, of the people, and we want to help wherever we can.
"There are people having a very hard time, it's very sad and they [LaLiga] tell us to continue and here we are, continuing."
