FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Champions League - Real Madrid v AC Milan - Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain - November 5, 2024 General view of the flag of Valencia in the stands as players are seen during a minute's silence in memory of the flood victims in Valencia REUTERS/Susana Vera/File Photo
(Reuters) - Players and coaches in Spain's LaLiga should not have had to raise concerns themselves about playing league matches following the deadly floods in eastern Spain, Villarreal forward Ayoze Perez said.
Floods last month led to the deaths of more than 200 people, with the Spanish FA postponing seven midweek Cup ties and all games scheduled for Valencia's eastern region.
However, matches in other regions of Spain went ahead, despite Barcelona coach Hansi Flick and Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone saying it made no sense to play.
LaLiga chief Javier Tebas said on Nov. 2 that it was best for the league to go ahead in non-affected areas, adding: "The best message is to be on the front line in our workplaces like all workers in other sectors."
Spain international Perez was asked about the league's response to the disaster on Wednesday.
"We shouldn't have reached the point that coaches and players had to come out and give their opinion, because ultimately it's so clear ... We're talking about a catastrophe," he told reporters.
"We had to be at Valencia's side. Football comes second, or third. What mattered was all those people affected."
LaLiga did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Perez's Villarreal did not play their match against Rayo Vallecano in the immediate aftermath of the floods, but returned to action the following week against Deportivo Alaves.
"The minute's silence (before the match) was very emotional," Perez said.
"Villarreal is so close to Valencia that we were so conscious that it was not the best conditions in which to play a game. The decision was not in our hands; we had to play, and so we did. But we all agreed that we shouldn't have."
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
