Real Madrid shows its public support to Ceuta in an institutional visit

Days after the controversy that arose in Elche –when Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius and Konaté refused to fully show a support shirt for Ceuta–, the president of Real Madrid, Florentino Pérez, will visit the autonomous city this Friday, as reported by OK Diario. The top white official will be accompanied by Emilio Butragueño, the club's director of institutional relations, and Pirri, the entity's honorary president and a native of Ceuta, to show his support for the Ceuta population. The Madrid expedition will be received by the president of the autonomous city, Juan Jesús Vivas, at 11:30 a.m., according to the aforementioned media outlet.

The news comes after Mbappé broke his silence regarding his controversial gesture before the match between Elche and Real Madrid. As the French star has assured in an interview with the newspaper As, although he has consideration for the people of Ceuta, he also wants to keep in mind the thousands of people who crossed the border into Spain on July 30. "The first thing I want to say is that I have full solidarity with Ceuta and all the victims. Because before being a player, I am a human being. But I also wanted to have a gesture and a thought for all the immigrants who have lost their lives and who are also in harsh conditions," he stated.

Thus, Mbappé has acknowledged that he found himself in a "difficult" situation, not only because the decision to wear the shirt was made by the clubs themselves, but also because he was aware that with this gesture people might think he was "against the people of Ceuta." "I have nothing against them and I support them 100% [...]. But I also wanted to have a thought for all the people who are suffering, and because I didn't want to prioritize suffering," he insisted. Broadly speaking, then, the French star has explained that the only message he wants to give is one of "positivity and peace." "I hope this is resolved quickly," he concluded.