Former FC Barcelona President Bartomeu Claims Messi Could Have Renewed

Former FC Barcelona Josep Bartomeu has claimed that Joan Laporta could've renwed Lionel Messi in 2021. FIFA via Getty Images Former FC Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu used an interview with Catalan paper ARA to claim that the club and his successor Joan Laporta could’ve renewed Lionel Messi ’s contract in 2021. Bartomeu resigned from his post in October 2020.

On the campaign train in the spring of 2021, Laporta made an election promise to renew Messi but then failed to keep it as the Argentine ended up walking to Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer. Barca’s lot was complicated by Financial Fair Play issues and a post-pandemic economic crisis on Bartomeu’s watch which almost pushed the club to obliteration. Laporta beat Victor Font at the polls in 2021 and again faced the businessman in a successful bid to be re-elected a fortnight ago.

On this campaign trail, Xavi Hernandez came out and endorsed Font by telling La Vanguardia that Messi’s return in 2023, once his PSG terms expired, was agreed only for Laporta to pull the plug because he didn’t want a “war” with the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner. Now Bartomeu has entered the discussion, claiming that Laporta could’ve prevented Messi leaving in the first place two years before that. “If they had done what had to be done, Leo Messi could have been perfectly renewed and other players could have been signed,” Bartomeu said.

“It wasn’t the fault of the inheritance [from Bartomeu], but of fair play because the new board inflated the losses to €555 million. When La Liga received [that news], it decided to do a second audit and considered that the losses were not these, since there were provisions worth €283 million. “But Barca decided to keep their proposal, La Liga applied it and the club lost fair play that it has not yet recovered to this day,” Bartomeu added.