St. Albans City striker John Frendo has apologised to his club for skipping their FA Cup qualifier on the weekend - in favour of attending El Clasico.
That's right, according to BBC Sport the 29-year-old was missing in his team's 1-0 defeat to Concord Rangers to instead jet off to Spain and watch Ronaldo and co. beat Barcelona 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu.
What makes things worse for him is that the result cost St. Albans dearly, seeing them lose out on £12,000 and a first-round tie with League Two side Mansfield Town - in which they would have received half of the ticket sales.
"I would like to apologise to all connected with St. Albans City Football Club," said the sorely-missed striker, who scored 43 goals in 54 appearances last season.
"I recognise that the FA Cup is important to a club at our level. I regret missing the match on Saturday - the extent of the reaction surprised me.
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MAXIMUM FINE IMPOSED
"The club has imposed a maximum fine upon me, which I have accepted, and I am now hoping to be able to make a positive contribution to our forthcoming league, Senior Cup and FA Trophy fixtures.
"I would like to add that I am enjoying my time at Clarence Park."
Frendo now has a huge fight on his hands to win back the fans, but remains crucial to the club's hopes of launching a sustained promotion push this season in a hugely competitive Conference South.
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