Laporta defends himself by pointing the finger

Barça president Joan Laporta held a press conference to explain the reasons for Leo Messi's departure. The purpose of this public address was, essentially, to point the finger at others. Bartomeu is to blame for his terrible, calamitous management that has left the club in a precarious situation (with more than €1.5 billion debt and losses of €487 million in the last season alone). Tebas is to blame for LaLiga's rigid salary cap rules, and for offering a solution that would leave the club needing to mortgage part of its rights for the next half-century. Many of the players are to blame for not agreeing to a wage cut (even without Messi, 95% of the club's income is allocated to player wages). Everyone is to blame. Besides Messi, of course, who he timidly but repeatedly praised throughout the press conference: "He did his best. We can't criticise him for anything". More than this, the player had agreed to a 50% wage cut and had repeatedly ignored offers from other clubs. Laporta answered all questions from the media with his usual charm and competence, but did not admit to making any errors himself. Despite the fact that he ran a presidential campaign based on Leo's renewal, he said "I don't feel like I'm to blame. I did all I could to get him to stay".

In a typical Cruyffian fashion, Laporta defended himself by going on the attack. "Renewing Messi would have entailed certain risks, and we cannot afford to put the future of the club at further risk". He acknowledged that "A decision had to be made, and I have made it". While many questions remain unanswered about the star's departure from Camp Nou, the president made it clear that the post-Messi era has now arrived. Two years early. The club will now suffer the sporting, emotional and economic consequences of this whole affair, which will be difficult to come to terms with. All of this after Laporta promised to make the club's fans feel excited again during his campaign.