Florentino Pérez Discusses Anas Laghrari and Election Campaign

Florentino Pérez launched his electoral campaign on Wednesday with the presentation of his candidacy. His strong performance included a direct attack on rival Enrique Riquelme. A day later, Pérez returned to the spotlight in an interview with Televisión Española, where he boasted about his management, intensified his assault on "the bad ones," kept fans guessing about potential signings, and addressed the controversial figure of Anas Laghrari, his advisor and right-hand man without an official position at the club.

Pérez intensified his offensive against Riquelme, stating, "I love Real Madrid, and when I see that they are going for him, here I am. I was detecting a movement in the shadows aimed at destabilizing the club through me. I still believe in the members, hence the call for elections. When I see the other candidacy, it turns out to be the same as Calderón’s, which was the darkest period in Real Madrid’s history. Moreover, they say this gentleman (referring to Riquelme) has asked for a loan at an annual interest rate of 54 percent. How can someone ask for that? I'm not making anything up. It feels like he has come because he needs the club for his business.

Pérez ruled out a face-to-face debate, saying, "No, I’m not going to debate with anyone; let him talk as much as he wants. I explain everything here. Privatizing the club? Those who say that are the bad ones. We have suffered many attacks, and LaLiga contributed because they wanted to take Madrid’s economic revenues to distribute among all clubs. An unprecedented situation that we managed to stop, but the only way to protect our heritage is for the club's value to belong to all members.

Regarding Anas Laghrari, Pérez stated, "Who says he wants to be president and whatnot? He doesn't even have the years to be president. He simply helps us; he is unrelated. He knows just enough about football to tell the truth, but he understands the technological world.

On the next coach, he remarked, "I’m still thinking. Do I have a name? Yes, two. Mourinho? He’s a good coach, clearly. I won’t announce it since I haven’t spoken to him yet.