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Former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has broken his five-year silence by strongly defending the Catalan club in the Negreira case, strongly denying any attempt to bribe referees, stressing that “the reports and documents are in court and the service is real”.
Bartomeu said in an interview with the Catalan “Sport” newspaper. “Barcelona never tried to bribe the referees. I witnessed it myself in 2014 as president, and I was aware of the existence of those reports as vice president. It’s proven.”
No referee has claimed that “Barcelona” bribed him
The former president of the Catalan club added: “No referee has claimed that Barcelona bribed him or tried to bribe him. The programs and videos filmed by Javier Enriquez Negrea are in court. The service is there, the documents are there.”
Bartomeu continued. “You can argue whether it’s more expensive or less, but it’s there. The judge will have to decide the matter. “Barcelona members can be sure that there was no attempt to bribe any referee.”
This makes no sense. We had the best team
Bartomeu strongly defended Barcelona, saying: “This is illogical. We had the best team in the world, considering the era of Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta, which witnessed the Catalan club’s overwhelming dominance at local and continental levels.
The Negra case is one of the biggest scandals to rock Spanish football in recent years, with Barcelona accused of paying millions of euros to Jose Maria Enriquez Negrea, the former vice-president of Spain’s referees’ committee, in exchange for arbitration reports and consultancy services.
I’m tired of being held accountable
In a related context, Bartomeu expressed his displeasure at being held fully responsible for the club’s current financial situation, saying:
He added: “I understand that there is talk against the previous board, but it could go on for a year or a year and a half, not 5 years, they are still talking about a bad financial legacy.”
Sharp attack on Laporta
Bartomeu has harshly criticized the club’s current president, Joan Laporta, accusing him of exaggerating financial losses and mismanaging the economic crisis.
“I arrived at the club with him in 2003. He had a certain way of governing between 2003 and 2010, and I sometimes find it difficult to accept that now.”
He added: “For example, the financial fair play violations we suffered as a result of a number of economic decisions made by the board of directors inflated the losses that ultimately hurt us.”
Bartomeu continued. “Old Laporta wouldn’t ignore that. The people who worked with him in this second phase had no knowledge of the world of football and this had a negative impact on the financial results for 2021 and 2022.”
Inflating losses hurt the club
Bartomeu revealed the details of the financial crisis, saying: “We lost €128 million in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, losses that could have been paid for over five years.”
“The current board of directors has closed the accounts for the next financial year, increasing the losses to 280 million euros. They claimed that it was due to mismanagement, not the epidemic, although the issue is clear.
He continued. “Because it was mismanagement, it didn’t work for more than 5 years and we lost our fair play certificate. I don’t know why they did it, but they made a mistake, maybe they didn’t realize the consequences of this decision.”
Messi’s departure is a historic mistake
Bartomeu has described Lionel Messi’s departure from Barcelona in the summer of 2021 as “one of the worst decisions ever made”, blaming Laporta for the decision.
“His departure seemed to me a historic mistake, given his sporting, economic and commercial contributions. Part of the economic problems we’ve faced in recent years have to do with not having a player like him.”
He added: “It is enough to look at the numbers of PSG or “Inter Miami”, he is more than just a football player.
Bartomeu concluded his speech by saying: “If Laporta had made the decision alone, I’d like to think he wouldn’t have made it,” indicating that the club’s current chairman was influenced by his advisers in making this fateful decision.
