Unlike recent years where Barcelona is a synonym for Leo Messi and nothing more, at the beginning of the millennium it was the dictionary definition for beautiful and team football and also for countless titles. Joan Laporta was the president who led the Blaugrana from 2003 to 2010 to good days that included two Champions League wins and also Pep Guardiola’s tiki taka, and now that Josef Maria Bartomeu has left, he is again a candidate to return to the throne. In a special interview with the Champions Studio he talked about that period, the current state of the club and his desire to restore Barça to its greatness.
- Laporta’s full interview will air tonight at the Champions Studio
“These have been seven successful years for Barcelona, especially in 2009 when we won everything, six titles from six competitions, it will be very difficult to surpass that,” he said. Laporta We are asked what his greatest memory of the period is: “It is difficult for me to say just one, because we had very beautiful days. If I think about it I might choose the game against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2005/06 (Barcelona won 0: 3 in the game that Ronaldinho won “It was a fantastic game, a historic game that they will remember, I was there as president, and the team was wonderful. It was a magical game.”
What was the secret of your magic at that time?
“Believing in ourselves and our abilities. We worked in a unique way under the philosophy of Johan Cruyff, we worked very hard to develop La Masia (Barcelona B team), to be proud of who we are and what we represent. We represent a country and we are a Catalan club, and represent Catalonia and at the same time we “A club that is open to the world, because we have supporters / fans all over the world. We made the club global at that time.”
“Another characteristic of our model at that time was that we were more than a club. We were pioneers in the corporate responsibility of football clubs, we were connected to society, we were solid as a club and tried to convey a message – we developed programs to help children and I was very proud of it.”
And what now?
“Now I want to do it again. I did my best to make Barcelona great in world football and that’s why I decided to come back. I love Barça, I am very committed to these tasks and I have the experience and enough courage to try to do it again. That will be my goal. “Barcelona will be the leader among the clubs in world football.”
“Barcelona is big and it is very important to believe in ourselves, in the potential and possibilities that Barcelona has. My slogan is ‘We love Barça’ and with my experience and our thinking and how we know the club, the desire is for Barcelona to be privileged in the world.”
“Previous directors had an obsession with deleting everything I did”
What are your plans?
“Being coherent, and working, working and working well, is my and my colleagues’ plan with me. We will work very hard to cover our debts, we will work very hard to reduce expenses and increase revenue. There are some business guidelines we must develop when we enter the club.”
“We have to work very hard to get new revenue. We know how to do it, we know how to bring in more sponsors, there are currently only 29 categories, and there are many more options.”
Bartomeu accepted the club as the best club in the world and he left it when he was devastated – how much does it anger you and how much damage is done?
My legacy, to be honest, was the best a club could have, or a new president could have. The president and other directors who left the club in November did bad management work, and that bad management grew with the Corona. They failed because they were obsessed with deleting everything I did, and obsessed with reaching $ 1 billion in revenue. “They did not think about the debt or the expenses, because at the same time they tried to increase the income, the debt increased and the expenses increased, and the result and the profits disappeared.”
“The policy they went by, in my opinion, was not the right one. They abandoned our young players and went to buy outside players. Their negotiations were not good. They bought at high prices and then the reduction on them increased, and the result is that the expenses were unsustainable. “Over time, and the revenue due to the corona has decreased, and this is a result of a loss and a large debt has been created. I know Barcelona, and thanks to our assets and my experience we can reverse the situation and improve the economic and sporting situation of Barcelona.”
“Think Messi wants to stay in Barcelona – we can fight PSG’s offer”
How do you think dealing with Leo Messi in the last few months, it felt a little humiliating
“I think he was disappointed, and did not feel comfortable with the previous management, and I think now he feels better. He started smiling again, which is very important for us because he is the leader of the team and it is important to see Messi feel more and more comfortable with the team. Messi knows for sure “If I win the presidency I will be a president he can trust and I will do my best to keep him, because he is the best player in the world and in my eyes he is very, very important to the club. I promise I will do my best to convince Messi to stay in Barcelona.”
“I’m in touch with Messi, but I did not talk to him about his stay, because I have his trust. First of all I have to be elected president and look at the club’s accounts. It is important to know the club’s options and what offer can be made. Barça is a luxury club with properties “We are very strong, we have a very big and important history, the financial bodies trust the club and if I am elected president I am sure they will believe in our project.”
Will leaving Messi be a top priority when she is elected president?
“Yes. He is the first priority, and at the same time there is also a priority to encourage the team and the coach, in a way that they will believe in themselves to succeed this season.”
“My dream is that in our 125th year as a club – in 2024 – I will open the new Camp Nou with Leo Messi in the team, and in the same year also take the Champions League.”
Maybe this will be his last year who knows?
“Who knows? He’s in good shape, I think he has another 3-4 years left.”
How do you feel as a Barcelona fan that the management presented him as a Barça problem and tried to get rid of him?
“In the eyes of Messi he was right, he was disappointed. The previous management thought to get him out of the club, they did not tell him the truth and he was disappointed. Messi’s reactions were logical, and I think today he wants to stay, it depends on the offer the club makes. From other groups, that we have a competitor in this matter. “
“I think Messi will want to stay at Barcelona, and I will do my best to keep him, given our options. Our offer will be great and I will make him try to understand that it is best for him to continue his history with the club. Leo Messi is the best player in the world and maybe the player “The best in the club’s history. I think he’s the best.”
Can you fight a big PSG offer?
“For sure. We will offer him a big and much better offer than the others – with the aim of taking the Champions League again with Barcelona. Money is not everything. City and PSG? Those teams that want Messi are spending a lot of money and they have not won the Champions League yet so it is not “It is guaranteed to bring them the Champions League. I think Messi will be very happy in Barcelona. The goal in life is to be happy with your environment and here in Barcelona he will be better than anywhere else in the world.”
“Jordi Cruyff Property of Barcelona”
Is Barcelona Model 2020/21 one of the mediocre teams that Barcelona have had for years?
“No. I have been a Barcelona fan since the age of 5 and there were times in our history that we had difficulties, but Barcelona always survived. We are fighters. We have always managed to find solutions in difficult times, it is a difficult time financially, but our team is improving, we are still in the Copa del Rey, in the Champions League, And second place in the league. “
“There is time to get back to normal, I believe in the team and the coach. They must be encouraged to be more competitive, but they are improving from game to game. There is a new coach this season (Ronald Koeman) and he is doing his best to improve the team and I feel they are improving.”
If you were president, would you let Luis Suarez leave?
“It belongs to the past. I don’t like to talk about things that have happened. I have to invest my energy to get the situation back to normal, improve Barcelona and not think about past situations that have no solutions at the moment.”
To reduce Barcelona’s debt, would not it have been wiser to release, say Antoine Griezmann for example, rather than Suarez?
“Now we have Griezmann and we will work with him. At the end of the season we will decide what we do, but I respect our players. Our players are the best in my eyes, Griezmann is a great player who plays for Barcelona, and he has a contract, and I will do my best to make him “Feel comfortable at the club and be better. I am satisfied with the players we have.”
“The picks come during the season and we have to work with whoever we have on the team, and encouraging them and not thinking about Suarez or other players is not what matters to me right now.”
Koeman will be the coach next season?
“He has a contract. He will be my coach, if the results are good and if our style of play and style is good. Every coach depends on the results and the way his team plays. In my opinion, Koeman deserves respect, because he is a great past player in Barcelona, and very well known in Barcelona. I respect Him, but as a coach he depends on the results and the way the game is played. “
Do you dream of bringing Pep Guardiola back to coach Barcelona?
“No. Pep is a coach at Manchester City and for me he is the best coach in the world. He has been very successful at Barcelona, he is a friend, but he is signed until 2023 at Manchester City, and at the moment that is not an option.”
What about Jordi Cruyff? Do you see him as a candidate?
“Jordi is a friend, I have known him for a long time. He is a smart guy, and in my opinion he is willing to take great responsibility for him, because he has experience, from Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel, among other things. He is ready, and he is a guy who knows football very well. “In China, but I think it is a property of Barcelona, and if I win the presidency I am open to the idea of intelligent people who will come and want to work in Barcelona.”
“I have my project, and right now I would rather focus on the people inside than on people who are not at the moment. If I decide I need to improve the people who work in Barcelona I will do it. I know enough people to help Barcelona at times like this.”
Many are sure that new blood is needed in Barcelona and that is why they will vote for Victor Font. What is your advantage over him? Why should they vote for you and not him?
“I have experience and it’s very important in the situation right now. I have the ability to bring the situation back, I tell people the truth, and I’m coherent. I respect the other contestants, I do not talk about them, I tell my truth and I talk about myself.”
What is your big dream if you are elected president?
“To win the Champions League again. It is possible, but in the short term the financial situation of the club needs to be stabilized.”
How long will it take to bring Barcelona back to economic stability?
“Hypothetically the crowd will return to the stadium at the end of the season, and then we will start the process of returning economic stability to Barça. I think within a year or a year and a half the situation will return to normal assuming the crowd returns to the pitches.”
About the project “Espai Barça”
“We are planning to build a new and renovated sports complex and sports complex, and renovate the stadium. All this should happen by 2024 and we need to think about how to meet the expense of such a large project. Our contract is fine, the plan has been approved, and the architectural project is over.”
How many words about the match in the quarterfinals of the Champions League between Barcelona and PSG?
“It will be a very difficult battle, but I am sure that with Messi anything is possible. I hope Messi will show them that he is the best in the world and that he is a Barcelona player. We play at home for the first time this time and I think we will have our opportunities, with our team and with Messi.”
Can Barça win another title this season besides the Copa del Rey?
“The Copa del Rey is a competition we are very respectful of. We ‘live’ in the Spanish league and also in the Champions League, and I think we must at least believe in ourselves to be successful this season.”
Do you have a special connection to Israel?
“Yes, I have a lot of friends here, I work here with Israeli clients, and I have good friendships with people in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Ashdod. I have been to Tel Aviv more than 10 times, I feel at home there, it is very similar to Barcelona, life “Dynamic names. I love Tel Aviv, I also love the Holy City of Jerusalem.”
Something you would like to say to Barcelona fans in Israel?
“I want to say thank you. Thank you for your support of our club. I really like that when I come to Israel I have the opportunity to share and talk to the fans there. I know you are very committed, I hope to bring Barcelona back to its great days and I will do my best to do so.” .