Joan Laporta spoke to defend FC Barcelona in the Negreira case. The Catalan president attacks in particular Javier Tebas, and Real Madrid, whom he accuses of “cynicism”.
“Barça is undergoing a gigantic defamation campaign due to defamatory insinuations that have nothing to do with reality. In 125 years of history, Barça has been a model of fair play on and off the pitch. » It was a day of great oral for Joan Laporta, the president of FC Barcelona, who held a press conference on Monday to react to the accusations his club faces in the Negreira affair. As a reminder, Barça is suspected of having paid a total of more than €6 million to the company of the former vice-president of the Spanish technical arbitration committee, José Maria Enriquez Negreira.
While his opponents denounce a campaign of corruption with the refereeing body, Barça claims to have only received information from the one who had become a consultant. “FC Barcelona has never taken any action with the aim or intention of modifying the competition to have a sporting advantage, assures Laporta. The tax authorities make it clear that they have not been able to demonstrate that the payments made to Mr Negreira could have influenced the decisions of the referees or the outcome of a match. She hasn’t been able to do it (prove it) because it’s not possible. »
Laporta launched Operation Counterattack, going after anyone who wants to harm his club. “They want to destroy one of the emblems of Catalonia like FC Barcelona, some spheres of power do not support the club being a Catalan platform open to the world”annoys the leader of the Blaugranas.
Laporta attacks Real Madrid
In the viewfinder of Laporta, there is in particular the president of the Spanish league, Javier Tebas. “With his constant demonstrations, he fueled the controversy and provided false documents to the prosecution. I ask him to stop his verbal incontinence because he is doing a disservice to the institution he represents. (…) He was the one who was in charge of fanning the fire and trying to get FIFA to participate in this lynching”denounces Laporta.
Finally, the leader of Barça launched a superb counter-fire by attacking his eternal enemy, Real Madrid. “It is a club that has historically been favored by refereeing decisions, believes Laporta. A club that was considered the team of the (Franco) regime. It should be remembered that, for seven decades, most of the presidents of the Referees Committee have been former members, former players or former managers of Real Madrid. For seventy years, the people who had to deliver justice on the pitch were people linked to Real Madrid. Alleging that they feel aggrieved seems to me an exercise in unprecedented cynicism. I hope this trial will unmask them and put them in their place. »
