Barcelona President elect Joan Laporta – ‘Negreira complaints are smokescreen for Real Madrid failure’ | OneFootball

Barcelona President elect Joan Laporta has dismissed Real Madrid’s complaints about the Negreira case, which continues to rumble on in the background of Spanish football. Three years after becoming public knowledge, the authorities continue to take testimony from those involved in the case.

The latest development is that former Vice-President of the Referees Committee (CTA) Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, who received the payments of €7-8m over 17 years from Barcelona that are under suspicion, is unlikely to face legal consequences. This week a third medical evaluation was carried out, determining that his state of mind has declined, making it impossible for him to take to the stand as a witness or defendant.

Laporta: “Real Madrid are creating a smokescreen”

Speaking to the media at the ‘Koeman Cup’, a charity golf event in Barcelona, Laporta told MD that the noise coming from Real Madrid about the case is simply distraction.

“Everything related to the Negreira case, which isn’t even a case, is falsehoods, and I think they’re doing it to create a smokescreen and divert attention from the fact that they haven’t won anything in two years. They’re using Barça to cover up their failures. The club is still studying these statements to respond in the appropriate forum.”

“They’ve invested a lot and still haven’t won anything, while we keep winning. We’ve won two league titles in a row, two Super Cups, and a Copa del Rey. He’s turned on the fan of misery and we’re not going to allow it. When they use Barca for their problems, we react, and we react forcefully. We have a great coach, a staff that works well, and a team that people really like. This Barca is once again striking fear into our rivals.”

What is Joan Laporta responding to?

Laporta’s ‘response’ comes after Real Madrid counterpart Florentino Perez made a series of allegations about Barcelona related to the Negreira case, claiming he had been ‘robbed’ of seven La Liga titles. On top of that, he revealed that Real Madrid would be sending a 500-page dossier to UEFA showing what they believe to be biased officiating. Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa has since responded and dismissed Laporta’s words.