Joan Laporta’s first assembly since becoming president of Barcelona for the second time takes place today. Before the event, Laporta spoke with La Vanguardia, in comments carried by Diario Sport, about the club’s financial situation and sporting aspirations.
“The club is worse than I expected, and I had already expected it to be in a complicated situation,” Laporta said. “Everything will be explained because otherwise we would be accomplices; they always appear in the contracts. When I say that I have found the club worse than I expected it’s because there are some contracts that condition the club a lot.
“Now, my board and I are in charge, and nobody’s been in charge for a while. We need to change, modernise. It was lost and nothing happened. Things are happening and things are going to happen that will be done for the good of Barcelona.”
Laporta has moved decisively since taking over at Camp Nou. As well as the players he’s brought in, he’s also moved to ensure that Lionel Messi stays at Barcelona beyond the expiration of his contract this month and brought in Jordi Cruyff as a sporting director. He also gave serious thought to dispensing with Ronald Koeman and bringing in a new coach, only to eventually back the Dutchman for this coming season.
Barcelona played scintillating football at times last season and won the Copa del Rey, but ultimately failed where it matters. They self-imploded and threw away La Liga at the final stretch after being in an advantageous position indeed, and took a heavy beating from Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. Work needs to be done to make the Blaugrana as competitive as they should be.
