Barcelona midfielder Marc Casadó never forgot when José Manuel Calderón celebrated Córdoba’s 2023–24 promotion by cursing “all Catalans”.
Córdoba beat a Barcelona B team that included Casadó in 2024’s Primera Federación play-offs, securing a place in Spain’s second tier at Barça’s expense. But Calderón crossed the line afterwards, uttering an anti-Catalan slur during an Instagram live video filmed on the team bus.
Fast forward to the summer of 2025 and Calderón was on the lookout for a new team after his contract with Córdoba, who finished ahead of 1999–00 La Liga champions Deportivo La Coruña and 2012–13 Champions League quarterfinalists Málaga to comfortably survive in the Segunda División.
The left back managed to secure a contract with Gimnàstic de Tarragona, a league below, which was publicly announced. But Nàstic, from Catalonia, revealed this week that they had walked back on the deal, sharing via Instagram that Calderón would no longer join them.
Casadó, a proud Catalan from the small town of Sant Pere de Vilamajor to the north of Barcelona, took great pleasure in Calderón, who had issued two public apologies over the course of the year since his ill-thought comments, suffering for those past actions.
Casadó replied to the post with an applause emoji, signaling delight at the news. So did many others.
Calderón is now without a club as the new season nears.
Having initially apologized in June 2024, Calderón was later given air time on Spanish network El Chiringuito to address the controversy. And while he offered his apology a second time, the player also dubiously tried to play down the severity of his words.
“Assuming the consequences it has, I wanted to apologize to all the people who have been offended,” he said. “I have Catalan family, Catalan friends and they didn't take it the same way. Here in Andalusia, for me it’s a normal expression, we don’t take it with such repercussions but it sat badly with people and I wanted to apologize publicly.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Barcelona Midfielder Stands Up for Catalans Amid Long-Running Feud.
