Barça: Joan Laporta harshly reprimands Xavi
As the FC Barcelona presidential election approaches, the debate between Joan Laporta and Víctor Font has turned into a clash, with Xavi Hernández and Lionel Messi at the center of the tensions.
The campaign for the presidency of FC Barcelona is taking an increasingly tense turn. In a debate held this Monday between outgoing president Joan Laporta and his rival Víctor Font, the exchanges grew harsher, notably around Xavi Hernández’s recent statements. In response to the criticisms from his former coach, Laporta did not hesitate to reply publicly. The Catalan leader asserted that Xavi himself acknowledged certain difficulties during his time on the Blaugrana bench, noting a form of fatigue and doubts about the club’s ability to compete with Real Madrid in the short term.
The Barça president also said he had been informed by sporting director Deco that the former midfielder wished to proceed with several changes within the squad, while regularly expressing his discontent, whether about the squad, refereeing, or the level of competitiveness of his staff. Laporta also revisited the hot topic of Lionel Messi’s return. According to him, the Argentine would have contemplated returning to the club in spring 2023, after the impossibility of extending his contract a few years earlier for financial reasons. But the operation ultimately did not materialize, the World Cup champion’s entourage preferring a destination less exposed, which led him to join Inter Miami CF.
Statements that immediately drew a reaction from Víctor Font. The presidential candidate denounced the way Laporta spoke about certain historic figures of the club. “The Barça does not belong to a single president. The former president hands out cards to bad Barça supporters. Now Xavi and Messi are bad Barça supporters“, he replied. A few weeks before the election, the battle for leadership of the Catalan club is intensifying, mixing political rivalries and still-raw memories of the Blaugrana era.
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