In the 1899 Auditorium, one of the few facilities that still function normally in a Camp Nou that is already beginning to be history after the total demolition of the third stand began this week, the traditional annual meeting was held of the board of directors with the Senate, the oldest members of the entity. In front of 112 of the 1,000 invited, President Joan Laporta gave a very realistic speech with just the right amount of excitement. Far from the great promises of other times, without giving names of signings and without mentioning Leo Messi after the possibility of closing his comeback collapsed like a house of cards.
“It has been a good season in terms of sport. The main objective has been achieved, which was to win the League. This is, in large part, the merit of Xavi Hernández and his coaching staff. Also from the players”, indicated the highest representative. “But we want more. We are demanding. For weeks we have been working to strengthen the first football team. We want to aspire to everything next season”, emphasized Laporta, familiar with all the conversations led by football director Mateu Alemany. In this sense, the Balearic met online on Tuesday night with Gündogan’s agent, Xavi’s favorite to occupy the inside position and free Pedri from having to play all the games. Gündogan, captain of Manchester City, who has just won a treble and would arrive on a free transfer, already knows the conditions offered by the club. He also knows that to close his arrival, the organization must first transfer a footballer to be able to register him. And he has asked for a few more days to make up his mind. On the table is the renewal offer from City, that from Barça and another from PSG. The latter is practically ruled out. “The legacy of the sports salary mass is very high. We have been reducing it, but we have to do more to be financially sustainable”, recalled Laporta. “LaLiga has rules. Despite the efforts, we must continue. But they have approved the feasibility plan and this is already a step. We will be able to sign up young players whose market value has risen”, he said in reference to Gavi and Araújo, whose market value has risen from 60 million to 90 million in the case of the youth player, and from 30 to 60 in the case of the Uruguayan, according to the specialized portal Transfermarkt.
In his speech, Laporta praised the Champions League that the Barça women’s team has conquered, thanked Jordi Cruyff for the work done, who is leaving the sports management by his own decision, and opened two more folders: that of Espai Barça and that of Negreira case. “The Negreira case is a giant smear campaign. Barça has never taken any action to try to alter the competition. Having technical and refereeing advice with people with extensive experience in the world of football is not a crime”, he pointed out. Regarding the remodeling works, he explained that “in two years, the project has been redefined, the costs resized and the works started. We managed to not cost the club members and subscribers any money by closing an agreement with 20 investors, who contributed more than 1.4 billion euros. Now we have to go play in Montjuïc. Make an effort to be able to have the best stadium in the world. And we have lowered the prices of the initial subscriptions because we are managing to generate more income”, he said.
Two and a half hours later, the senators left Camp Nou. There was a question period planned. Nobody asked about Leo Messi. Realism is the new essence of the club.
