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Santi Cazorla criticized La Liga as far behind the Premier League after Real Oviedo’s match was abandoned due to an unsafe pitch, sparking outrage.
Real Oviedo’s Santi Cazorla (Real Oviedo/X)
There’s long been a running argument in European football: which league truly sets the standard — the Premier League or La Liga?
Santi Cazorla may have just settled it with one brutal sentence.
Cazorla, who has played at the highest level in both La Liga and the Premier League during a glittering career with Villarreal, Arsenal and Spain, did not hold back.
In a scathing post on X, the former midfielder delivered a damning verdict.
“The reality is that La Liga is light years away from the Premier League in every way.”
What should have been a routine Spanish second-division clash between Real Oviedo and Rayo Vallecano on Saturday instead turned into an embarrassment for Spanish football.
Oviedo’s trip to Vallecas was called off just hours before kick-off, with La Liga declaring the recently re-laid pitch unsafe for players.
By then, it was too late. Oviedo’s squad, staff and travelling supporters had already made the long journey from Asturias for nothing.
La Liga officials ruled the game could not go ahead due to the pitch’s condition, a decision that sparked immediate backlash. Just a day earlier, Rayo players themselves had issued a public protest against their own club, demanding urgent improvements at Vallecas and better treatment for fans.
On Sunday, Oviedo formally asked the Spanish FA (RFEF) to award them the three points for the abandoned match. The request is unlikely to succeed, but the frustration is real.
Club president Martin Pelaez has been vocal in calling for accountability, arguing that replaying the match would only reward negligence.
And now, one of Oviedo’s most famous sons has weighed in.
La Liga has faced growing criticism in recent years for its handling of infrastructure, scheduling and governance issues. The Vallecas fiasco has only added fuel to that fire.
February 09, 2026, 10:26 IST
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