Clubs like Levante and Valencia expressed their gratitude for what Real Madrid did before their Champions League match against AC Milan.
This week, European football returned for all teams involved in the continent’s major competitions. In fact, for one of these teams, he returned in general, as he had not played since October 26th. Real Madrid faced AC Milan in the fourth round of the Champions League group stage, after the latter did not play their Liga EA Sports match against Valencia CF last weekend due to the devastation caused by the storm DANA which is currently raging in Spain.
The catastrophe is serious, with hundreds of deaths reported and many missing, making football overshadowed. The area most affected by the storm was the Valencian Community, devastated in many parts, experiencing a real tragedy due to human, material and health losses. This situation prompted society to band together, with many contributing their efforts to help in any way they could.
Numerous voices called for the complete postponement of the championship matches, but this did not happen, and only the matches scheduled in the most affected areas were rescheduled. This has led to various acts of respect and tribute at different stadiums in Spain and beyond, such as the moving minute of silence observed on Tuesday at the Philips Stadium before the match between PSV Eindhoven and Girona FC. He wasn’t the only one, as all European matches observed minutes of silence, including the one held in Madrid.
Real Madrid, playing in their own stadium, wanted to organize something special to honor the victims of the DANA storm and show solidarity with all those who were affected. Just before their match against Milan, a large banner was unfurled in one of the stands of the Santiago Bernabéu, with the words ‘Valencia we all’, displayed even before the players took to the pitch and the Champions League anthem League was played. This was just the beginning of the expressions of solidarity that followed one another in the white coliseum.
The starting players of Carlo Ancelotti’s team took to the pitch wearing shirts with the same message as the banner, posing for the official match photo while wearing them, before observing a minute’s silence. This was accompanied by a piece of music that resonated among the more than 80,000 spectators in the stadium, with videos showing the message ‘Todos somos Valencia’ and a giant flag of the Valencian Community displayed in one of the stands. It was undoubtedly an emotional moment, which was recognized by those affected.
Some Valencia teams responded to this touching tribute with gratitude. Levante UD published a message on At times like these, sports rivalry and everything else fades into the background.
