FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta took some time in his first speech in his fourth term to fore a warning shot at Real Madrid president, Florentino Pérez.
“The coming years will be exciting; they will see the consolidation of an economically strong Barça, the completion of the Spotify Camp Nou, and the continuation of the sporting project for the first team and the other professional squads. We will have a competitive team, but – just as I say that – I must also say that we cannot let our guard
down, because there are those who never rest,” Laporta said alluding to the president in charge of Madrid’s “White House.”
Pérez took a hard line against Barcelona in the last few months as he was engaged in his own presidential campaign, which ultimately proved successful. In particular, Pérez amped up accusations towards Barcelona in relation to the Negreira case but Laporta isn’t at all worried.
“They won’t get away with it. We know what UEFA thinks about this, about all of this, and they won’t get away with it. It’s just another tantrum from them, trying to drag this out to justify actions that make no sense and won’t succeed. They’re in the ordinary courts, and we’ve been dealing with this for a long time. We’ve submitted the evidence in the proceedings. The opposing parties haven’t submitted anything,” added Laporta.
The Madrid club president declared the relationship between the two clubs “completely broken,” accusing Barça of “stealing” titles. While the Negreira is an ongoing legal dispute, it is still unresolved. No evidence has conclusively proven that Barcelona illegally won a title, or paid a referee to influence a match. However, payments made to José María Enríquez Negreira, not a referee then but vice-president of the refereeing committee, have been confirmed. The true purpose and effect of those payments remains in dispute.
In addition, Madrid sent a dossier to UEFA of bias allegedly helping Barcelona, spanning several hundred pages. This all came as Madrid and Barcelona’s unlikely alliance when both were trying to launch the European Super League was ultimately broken as the project fell apart.
At the time, Laporta labeled those attacks a smokescreen from Madrid’s own underperformance on the pitch, and some analysts said it was a cynical ploy to gain favor among the club’s most ardent fans right before an election.
By focusing on attacks from outside, Laporta showed that the disputes from the past are far from resolved, though he did not mention the Madrid president by name.
“In the face of their attacks, they will always encounter a president and a board with strong leadership, ready to defend the institution against anything and anyone. Barça must always be defended; there is no room for half-measures. We defend the club in the boardroom, and this dynamic will continue in the years ahead,” Laporta said.
