El Cacereño, from Nepal to Real Madrid: "It may not have been the best way to prepare for the game"

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"Perhaps it has not been the most suitable to prepare for the game," acknowledges

, coach of Cacereño, a team from the Second Federation and rival of Real Madrid tonight (9:00 p.m., -TVE1) in the 16th final of the Copa del Rey.

The Extremaduran squad landed in Barajas on New Year's Eve after a 12-hour flight from Nepal, where they stopped for a week to play two friendly matches in order to promote the creation of the largest Buddhist center in the West that is planned to be built in the capital of Cáceres.

Real Madrid travels there by coach (296 kilometres) due to the communication problems suffered by Extremadura.

The white team will return to the capital of Spain once the match is over: «I really like the bus, I'm delighted.

So I can see something of Spain, which I don't know as well as Italy.

It is a moment to enjoy this wonderful country », he warned,

who rests headlines like

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,

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or

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It is, therefore, a game marked by long journeys.

On the Extremaduran side, Cobos acknowledges that his players are tired after the Asian tour, although he does not give it as an excuse: the motivation of playing "against the best team in the world" will cause them to go out and compete "at 200 percent and let themselves the soul".

The coach put the "good of the club" before the sports planning of this historic cup tie, aware that the pairing has served to publicize the Buddhist temple like never before, which includes a 47-meter seated

statue , the largest in the world. world, with a weight of 1,600 kilos, surpassing that of Hong Kong.

An expedition of 50 people

The entity responsible for this construction, the Lumbini Garden Foundation, in collaboration between the Cáceres City Council and the Junta de Extremadura, programmed two matches against the senior section of this Asian country and also with the sub-21, with a victory for Cacereño by 0 -3 and 1-2, respectively.

The expedition, of 50 people, was received by the president of Nepal,

.

The template, with the authorities of Nepal.

The place chosen is Mount Arropez, on the outskirts of the urban area, which includes 800 square meters of environmentally protected area (ZEPA zone) and right next to two quarries with valid licenses that blast between 20,000 and 30,000 kilos of dynamite at the week.

In addition, the area is located within the protection zone defined by the Ministry of Defense for the Cefof shooting range, the city's military headquarters.

The recent trip to Asia this week was advertised with the motto Soccer for Peace in order to avoid the criticism that arose last September when it was learned, as published by EL MUNDO, that an expedition from the Spanish-Nepali promoting foundation organized a 12-day expedition to the mines of Mandalay, in Myanmar, formerly Burma.

It was about checking in situ the construction processes of the white jade statues from which the stones will come out for the construction of the Buddha.

The problem is that the companies that exploit these mines are linked to the army that carried out a coup in this country, which forced the forced exile of the main democratic leaders.

The controversy has accompanied the project ever since, which has public funding (281,229 euros plus another 50,000 in the regional budgets of the Board in 2023) to build a great Buddha of Peace, although stained with blood.

The political parties of the municipal opposition (PP and Podemos) asked for explanations, because the expedition also met with members of the coup Military Junta, specifically, with the Burmese Tourism Minister,

.

At the end of November, and headed by the mayor of Cáceres,

, another institutional trip was organized to hold an audience with the king of Bhutan (a country in South Asia) to seek new ways of financing.

The players of Cacereño, during a match in Nepal.DV

The match against Real Madrid has raised enormous expectations, much more than the gigantic Buddha.

As soon as the result of the draw was known, the club from Extremadura increased the capacity of the stadium to 14,000 spectators, by including additional stands in both backs and in the stands.

The locations -with priority for members and sponsors- sold out within a few hours of going on sale (100 euros for the most expensive).

In its 103-year history, the team from Cáceres had never played in front of so many fans.

Only one match between Spain and Romania, in April 1991, brought together more spectators (16,000) at the Príncipe Felipe stadium, where Manolo, from Cáceres, played at the time for Atlético de Madrid.

The pitch at the Príncipe Felipe stadium, while not in perfect condition, will present a better impression than in the previous match against Girona, on December 22, in which Cacereño managed to qualify (2-1).

Pending the benefits generated by the giant Buddha, the party, according to president

, "will financially save a season and a half."

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