Girona V Real at risk of being called off over safety concerns

The game, set to be the two teams' tenth of the La Liga season is seemingly at risk of not being played.  Despite both teams being completely focussed on the game and more than happy to play, the potential threat of a declaration of independence by the Parlament de Cataluña could still change everything.

According to Spanish radio show 'El Transistor' on 'Onda Cero', the match is at risk of being called for safety reasons. There are concerns that fan protests, which could include pitch invasions, could prevent the game being played as normal and could put the safety of both the players and the fans at the Estadi Montilivi at risk.

There is particular concern that if the govenment invokes Article 155 and begins the process for a new set of elections in Catalonia that things could turn nasty very quickly indeed. The government is keen to avoid a repeat of the violence that took centre stage during the referendum on October 1 and apalled onlookers.

Despite the concerns, the Catalan Football Federation (FCF) has so far allayed fears of a cancellation: "At this moment in time there will be no change to the match between Girona and Real Madrid. The game will go ahead as planned. If independence is declared, everything will continue as normal, this is football," explained FCF president Andreu Subies.

Real boss Zinedine Zidane has also given his thoughts on the matter, saying: "We have heard something about a possible calling off of the game but we want to play and we're confident that there will be no problem in doing so."

For now, there is nothing official to report and preparations for the game are going ahead as normal, though that could all still change.

CUENTA @jrdelamorena que la @policia está estudiando si se suspende el partido @GironaFC - @realmadrid por motivos de seguridad. pic.twitter.com/BaBENw4coK

— El Transistor (@ElTransistorOC) 26 October 2017