The decision to kick their women’s team out of the Copa de la Reina has been overturned, and Barcelona has vowed to “take every effort” to make it right.
The Catalans have won both the league and cup in Spain for the past three years, however it has since been discovered that they fielded an ineligible player in their 9-0 victory over Osasuna in the last 16 of this year’s cup competition.
Despite being outmatched on January 10, Osasuna was proclaimed the winner on a technicality because Barcelona attacker Geyse scored while she was supposed to be serving a ban.
Brazilian Geyse was dismissed in her previous encounter in the competition, when she represented Madrid CFF against eventual champions Sporting Huelva in the quarterfinals of the previous campaign.
According to ESPN, Barcelona is sure that Geyse was not included on the pre-game lists of disciplinary disqualifications supplied by cup organizers the Royal Spanish Football Federation. The club believes there are grounds to successfully contest the decision (RFEF).
The Camp Nou giants issued the following statement following the women’s team’s expulsion on Tuesday: “FC Barcelona announces that the club will continue to fight for the women’s team’s rights after they were penalized by the competition committee for fielding an ineligible line-up, with an appeal to be presented in due course.
“Should the fine not be withdrawn on appeal, FC Barcelona will take all step available, as it is believed that in this case the starting lineup was judged ineligible owing to technicalities,” the statement continued.
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