Laporta: "They sign names, we have a team"

Barcelona gave an interview to American newspaper The New York Times.





Real has now spent over $150 million on two of the top players in the world in Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaká. Does it worry you to see them bulk up their squad, and are you concerned about inflated transfer fees?
These are not the market prices. The reason they are doing this is that they have emergencies, so they have to take risks. Barcelona is their rival, and we won everything last season and that made them anxious. Looking to next season, you know that they need to motivate their supporters. They are buying names with great talent, but to join the players to be a team will not be easy for them.

It will be a very interesting season: we have two different models. One model is you build a team with checks and money. And another model is the one we have, where we have a trajectory, where we are mature, and identified with our culture. Of the players we have in our first team, more than 50 percent come from our youth teams. We think that it makes our club sustainable.

Now do you feel there is pressure on you to go out and sign a big name, or do you look at your staff and figure that you already have the best player in the world in Lionel Messi?
That’s right, we already have the best player in the world, Messi. But the most important thing that we have is a team that works. Like I told you, they sign names, and we have a team.

But you could argue that your club has done the same in the past. Barca made a big push for David Beckham in 2003 and, when it didn’t work, you went out and signed Ronaldinho.
It was different. At the beginning of our mandate, we signed Ronaldinho. But we also incorporated Rafa Marquez for 5 million and the second season, in 2004, we incorporated Deco, Eto’o, Giuly, Edmilson, Belletti. We were creating a team. And the difference is that we create FIFA World Players and Ballons D’Or, and the other model buys FIFA World Players and Ballons D’Or. Ronaldinho was not any of those things yet when he came to Barcelona. We created a team for him to be the best.

You said that they have to take risks now by bringing in big names. But last season you took a risk in the other direction last season by hiring Pep Guardiola, who had never managed at the top level.
At the time, we were sure that this coach had a lot of experience at our club. Pep was a player. He was a reference. He was captain. He knew our club very well. At the same time, he was very talented and very intelligent about football. And he was brave. We knew him as a coach of our second team and we followed him for a season. So from our point of view, it was not as risky as people said.

When you first took over in 2003, you said you wanted to create a revolution in football. Now, entering your final year as president, can you look back and say you’ve done that?
We wanted to create a philosophy of attacking, attractive football — the origin is the Johan Cruyff philosophy. It’s a mix between Catalan and Dutch football, with some touches of Brazilian and Argentine. And we have made this is our philosophy about football.

You’re a club with a global reach, but you’re also very proud of your Catalan roots. Historically, the club has even been an emblem for Catalan separatists and, under Franco, it was the last bastion of Catalan culture. And you’ve made it a point of your tenure to remind people that the club is a fundamentally local symbol.
Of course, it’s the flag of our country. We are Catalans. This is our identity. When we say we are more than a club, it’s because it’s a club tied to our culture. And we’ve been global being Barca, the authentic Barca, with our language, with our players.

read the complete interview here


Read more:
The year of Laporta
Laporta: "We want to be global to be stronger"

The year of Laporta (part 2)

Barcelona president Joan Laporta looked back at the year 2008 in an interview with Catalan sports paper Sport.





July: Laporta survives a vote of no confidence with 60% of the socios asking for his resignition.
The result of the vote was a vote of punishment and that's how I accepted it. When it seemed like this whole fiasco would be dropped, some members of the board decided to leave the committee. They shared the same idea of the model behind the club that this board defended, but they didn't share the same ideas on how our project would continue.

August: Eto'o in the end stays at Barca.
Samuel had to stay with us and the process of keeping him in the summer went well. We regained the best Eto'o, determined and motivated at 100%.

September: Victory against Espanyol with incidents in the stands.
A great victory but also the day that I panicked the most in the presidential box. The feeling of insecurity was tough, and I also had to hear insults and accusations because they made us responsible for the actions of a few radical supporters that we don't even let into the Camp Nou.

October: Barça thrashes Atlético 6-1.
It was spectacular. The first half was dream-like. We will remember the match against Atlético for a long time. Aside from the goals, I remember the speed that the team moved at and the pressure they put on the opposition.

November: SPORT discovers Guardiola's rules.
Josep Guardiola manages the dressing room with the experience of being in a professional dressing room for many years, and he perfectly knows the club and its environment. He understands that the group of people that have to work with each other daily must have a good relationship and a few norms when living together, as a group, but also with as much normality as possible.

December: Barça are winter champions.
A great response after Villarreal's first goal and an important victory against a direct rival. We extend our lead, playing great games, things that are only important if we can continue doing them as the league continues.

Translated by: AL


This was the seond and last part of this interview. You can read the first part here:
The year of Laporta (part 1)

The year of Laporta (part 1)

Barcelona president Joan Laporta looked back at the year 2008 in an interview with Catalan sports paper Sport.




January: Iniesta renews his contract until 2014 and his clause.
Andres Iniesta has proven himself as one of the most valuable players on the team. He is a key player and as I've said before, he's a part of the club's crest. Assuring that he'll continue was, without a doubt, great news for Barcelona fans.

February: Dismissal of Dusko Ivanovic as basketball coach.
Our basketball team needed something new so we ended the era of Dusko from the sidelines. The bid for Xavi Pascual, proposed by both director Josep Cubells and then-secretary Zoran Savic, was assured to be a good decision. The team has recovered something important: the connection with Palau.

March: Barca, to the quarterfinals of the Champions League but Messi is out two months.
It was a harsh blow to our hopes in such an important transition period of the season, qualified for the quarterfinals, and improving in the Liga and in the semifinals of the Copa del Rey. Samuel Eto'o's injury, in addition to Leo's, hurt our offensive potential.

April: The season ends without a title.
A great disappointment, without a doubt, because we had many hopes in the Champions League. From the stands, I was screaming for a penalty that wasn't given to Leo Messi. I'm sorry for that, but what Barcelona fan hasn't rebelled against a referee's decision? The consequence of the season made room for change, as anticipated, with Pep Guardiola as manager. That night ended a season without a title.

May: Rijkaard says goodbye to the Camp Nou.
We owe Frank a lot. I know that the Barcelona supporters thank Frank Rijkaard for all that he did for us. Great football, titles and a way of playing that could only be replaced by somebody like Guardiola.

June: Guardiola takes over with a new team.
He had assured me before that he would take over. The day that I proposed that he would take over the first team, he first assured me that Barca B would be promoted and that they would be winners of their group.

Translated by: AL


This was the first part of this interview. You can read the second part on this blog in the coming days with Laporta talking -among other things- about the vote of confidence and about Eto'o not leaving last summer.

Read more:
Laporta: "We want to be global to be stronger"
Laporta: "To govern is to resist"

Laporta: "We want to be global to be stronger"

Barcelona president Joan Laporta gave an interview to the club's official media.





Did you imagine in August that everything would go so well?
We’d taken some decisions in the belief that things would turn out well, but what the football first team’s done is way beyond expectations.

Choosing Guardiola was risky but he seems to be on the right track.
It was an important decision because it meant changing the manager of the first team, and that’s one of the most important decisions you can take. It’s true it wasn’t supported by all, but nonetheless we chose Guardiola. We thought things would go well because he knows more about football and about the club than just about anyone. We believe things are on the right lines. However, I would repeat that we have to be cautious and calm about it and keep our feet on the ground.

Guardiola means Barça will keep the style that’s so admired around the world and maybe update it.
That’s right. Guardiola is keeping the essence and football philosophy of Barça with an attacking game, looking to win right from the kick-off and playing possession football as it’s taught in our academy, and above all with an intense commitment and a willingness to fight to the end. I think he's doing things that are appreciated all around the world.

It’s been a smooth changeover in terms of playing style.
I think it’s important to stress something here: we have to be grateful to the past. We have to be grateful to people like Frank Rijkaard and other players who have led this team and are now no longer here. They’ve also helped towards the good times we’re going through now. Some of our players have learnt a lot from others who’ve since left the club. Frank Rijkaard has given us a lot and laid the groundwork for what the team is doing now and how it’s playing. I know that Pep Guardiola is grateful to him as well because it’s been Frank and Txiki who’ve been building the squad over the last few years. Finding someone to take over from Frank Rijkaard was really hard. He’d done a really good job and built a positive image for Barcelona. Pep has his own style but one that’s comparable with Frank’s, two different ways of doing things but both equally valid for managing Barça’s first team.

What does the chairman of FC Barcelona feel when everyone is talking about Barça academy players as being crucial for Pep Guardiola’s side?
It’s the greatest feeling of pride a Barça chairman can have. It’s come about because of a number of different reasons: because the academy works well, because there’s a coach who knows what’s going on and is brave enough to pick home-grown players, and thirdly because we have a technical secretary in Txiki Begiristain who’s put together a competitive squad. I’ve always thought that clubs which are committed to their academy players have a style of play which is taught in their academy and are also financially much more viable and sustainable. And what’s most important, it keeps the core of the club’s identity alive.

People are now talking about two new pillars in the club’s management: solidarity and internationalisation. Is this part of a new policy at Barça?
Barça evolves and has to adapt to a changing world. Barça has always been more than a club, but this concept needs to be updated and renewed. The model is good but it needs to evolve all the time. If you like, Barça was a Formula 1 car with three wheels, sports, economics and the social aspect. Now it’s a Formula 1 car with these three wheels and two more, namely solidarity and the internationalisation of the club.

The club has made a lot of progress in these two areas.
We’ve been pioneers in solidarity and charity work. We are fully aware of the club’s corporate social responsibility; we have to give back to society part of what society has given us, because that’s why we are who we are. And hence Barça is more than a club in the world. At UNICEF, for example, they’ve recently presented us as an example of what a football club can do to combat a devastating disease like AIDS. Barça has partnered programmes in Swaziland and now we’re in Angola. Plus with our XICS programme we’re also helping kids in Catalonia.

And also over the last few weeks there’s been the MÉS project...
This project is especially important to me. We’ve done it with Nike and the UNHCR to help kids who are in refugee camps because of natural disasters or wars. This line of ecological clothing that Nike makes and which is branded MÉS is sold in all Nike’s stores worldwide. MÉS is a Catalan word which means ‘more’ and comes out of the phrase “more than a club”, so I’m especially pleased because it’s a way of promoting our language and our country with a charity project.

When talking about the new project for the club you always mention Norman Foster’s new Camp Nou. Why is that?
I want Barça members and fans to come to see this as a social project, because we want a stadium that’s more comfortable and safer and therefore better for Barcelona members. We want the members to get a more intense Barça experience through the use of new technology. Then it’s a social project because it’s a city project.

Does Barça see globalisation as an opportunity to be bigger around the world?
We want to be global to be stronger. That means that globalisation has to be an opportunity for Barça. So we have strategies in place to promote Barça’s image all around the world, and especially in the US because we think that it is a very important country in which to promote Barça’s image. Over there we have programmes such as the summer tour, charity projects with Malaria No More and so on. Recently we’ve also put in a bid with some investors for a franchise in Miami to play in the US’s professional soccer league. Barça’s responsibility and challenge with this team will be to make it competitive and that’ll help to promote Barça’s image in the US.

Is Barça ready to face the crisis that the whole world is experiencing?
Yes, fortunately we are because we’ve take the necessary precautionary measures. Financially we’ve reached an agreement with Nike which is perhaps the best contract on the market, and we also have one with Mediapro for Barça’s broadcasting rights. These two contracts mean we can face up to this crisis with a sense of security as they give us a cushion. Plus we also paid off all our bank debt last October. I feel that only companies which have been able to reduce their debts will be able to get through this crisis with the peace of mind you need.

What’s your wish for club members in 2009?
I would say to them that they should enjoy the good times Barça is going through now. Football teaches you a lot of things, and one of them is that you have to make the most of the good times, albeit with caution and humility. I’d also urge them to help make sure that between us we can make this a great season for Barça. I wish them all a Happy New Year and long live Barça!




read the full interview here

Laporta: "To govern is to resist"

Barcelona president Joan Laporta gave an interview to Spanish newspaper El País.





Since you surprisingly won the elections back in 2003, a lot of the decisions you have taken have been courageous, and sometimes they even seemed reckless.
If you want to be a good president, you have to be courageous but responsible.

It looks like you took advantage of the exit of some board members in July to do what they didn't let you do before.
The decisions are certainly working quite well: the appointment of Josep Guardiola as manager, the organizational impulse with the new chief executive officer Joan Oliver, the challenge of collecting the 380 million euro we predicted and keep a surplus on the budget. We've paid all our bank debts and the new sports centre, we've reactivated the sale of the season-ticket holders’ seats, Barça TV will broadcast publicly and we continue with our solidarity activities. Every year we create new successes that all start from a competitive football project.

You now understand your predecessor Josep Lluís Núñez when he took some decisions against the public opinion?
We cannot be compared. I take a position and then the board makes the decisions.

The bid for an MLS franchise doesn’t seem very supported by the entourage of the club, like your visits to Uzbekistan and some of your relations with persons who are not linked to the world of football.
I feel the energy to keep on innovating. If we are more than a club and we live in a global world, you have to look at all the options. I have always been innovative and courageous when it came down to making decisions.

You have become richer since you became president?
I have my businesses and I try to make them work, but never at the expense of the club. Being the president of Barcelona, gives you more chances to meet people. It’s a phase of your life, a privilege. On the other hand, I’ve also gone through some very difficults moments in my private life.

Nowadays the politicians aren’t so keen anymore to get on the picture with you and there’s no talk anymore about your possible political career.
I already said a while ago that I’m not motivated to get involved in these matters. I would have liked to be the centre forward of Barcelona.

You are still true to the spirit of former sports director Armand Carabén and to the slogan “more than a club”, just like you are true to the football legacy of Cruijff and the Dream Team?
We keep on respecting the spirit of the founder and of Carabén. His example showed us how to lead the club, like Cruijff showed us how to play. The result is the club that I’m leading.

You’ve already found your computer that was stolen at the Camp Nou earlier this year?
I’m not looking look for it anymore.

Your outbursts, like the incident at the airport and the discussion with your driver, don’t cast a shadow on your work as president?
If that’s the only thing that can be criticized, this means there’s not a lot to criticize. The main thing are the ideals.

You think Barcelona will win against Madrid next week?
I’ve stopped thinking about things that don’t contribute anything. We’re focused on staying cautious and to keep on working hard. To govern is to resist. To win, you have to resist.


This was the second and last part of this interview. Read the first part here:

Laporta: "Mourinho was a more secure option"

Laporta: "Mourinho was a more secure option"

Barcelona presidnet joan laporta gave an interview to Spanish newspaper El País.





Intuition? Courage? How do you explain your capacity to survive?
I believe you have to be able to understand Barça in a certain way. There were people who are true to club but who have stopped walking along with me for certain reasons. Everybody has his own way of being. I have not changed and I keep going on with those who continue at the institution. The ideals of the club are a lot stronger than personal ambitions and to bring them into practice the club needs to be governed. I believe in what I'm doing and I have the strength to overcome, the motivation, the energy and the innovative spirit that is needed to lead. Barcelona is an international reference at a social, sporting, economic and solidary level and we have to strengthen that.

Those who have abandoned you are suggesting that your behaviour is too focused on your own person and that your management is not cautious enough. You didn't transform from a president into a manager?
I've always been an executive president. Barça is travelling at a high speed and you need a will to innovate. You need to hold the steering wheel firmly to get the club where we want it, without being turned away from our objective. There are things that were meaningful four months ago but that aren't anymore now.

The economic crisis has also an impact on the attendance at the Camp Nou.
We're talking about a global crisis. The fact that the games are broadcasted by non-pay channels and the hours at which most of the games are played also have an influence. Maybe we should start to play at different hours for more people to come and watch the games.

The fans sure have stopped watching at the president's box and are now watching the pitch again. You feel more comfortable than last season?
In the delicate moments, you should show that you're able to resist. There's a lot of pressure and I understand that other board members couldn't deal with that anymore. I stayed with those who believed in the project and didn't leave the ship.

Those who resigned were preparing a coup?
I don't feel betrayed or disappointed. I believed in the project and I had to assure the stability. It had been decided since February that Guardiola would be the manager this season in case Rijkaard wouldn't win a trophy, and if not, next season. And there also were the economic challenges and the project of the new stadium.

Why Guardiola?
The first who spoke to me about Guardiola as a coach was Cruijff in December 2007. At that time, I was worried about the performances of the team. It looked all very similar to the season before, so I asked Cruijff for advice. I mentioned the name of Guardiola because those who were following him as B-team coach were talking very positively about him, and especially sports director Txiki Begiristain. I realized that if we needed a substitute, we had one within the club. I talked about the situation with Rijkaard. Then the team made a good comeback and I decided to meet with Guardiola to tell him that if the team wouldn't win a trophy, he would be next season's manager. I also explained that to Rijkaard, who proposed to appoint Guardiola as assistant coach so he could prepare the change. Guardiola nevertheless wanted the B-team to win the championship and to get promoted. We chose Guardiola despite some board members prefering other options.

Mourinho and Wenger?
Among others. We chose Guardiola for his knowledge about football and the club and because of his football philosophy. Cruijff told me that Guardiola sees the game in a very clear way. It was my responsibility that the new manager would respect the history of the club. And Guardiola has a fine history at this club. I was convinced by his modesty, skills, knowledge and dignity.

Although people accused you that appointing Guardiola was a way to protect yourself, wouldn't appointing Mourinho have been a better umbrella in a way?
The president has to hold on to a way of playing football and not go after the brand of the day. The appointment of Guardiola shows the attachment to the cruijffian philosopy. After Rijkaard, there's now Guardiola and that's clear to everyone. When we appointed him as coach as coach of the B-team, I was convinced that he would end up as manager of the first team. Mourinho was a more pragmatic option, a more secure one, but Guardiola fitted our way of understanding the game of football. Now a lot of people want to make me believe that they've recommended Guardiola to me while in fact they advised against him. Guardiola is a constant source of football inspiration.


This was the first part of this interview. The second part will follow in the coming days with Laporta talking -among other things- about the MLS bid and his political ambitions.