Joan Laporta furious at agent over exit of Barcelona talent – ‘A betrayal from the baldy’ | OneFootball

Barcelona presidential candidate Joan Laporta has cast his ire on former Barcelona and Spain midfielder Ivan de la Pena, blaming him for the exit of Dro Fernandez. The 18-year-old talent joined Paris Saint-Germain for €8.4m in the winter transfer window, and was represented by de la Pena, who has worked with a number of Barcelona players.

Plucked from the under-19 side by Hansi Flick, Dro began to make first-team appearances at the start of the season. However Barcelona were unable to tie him down to a new deal once he turned 18 at the start of the year, and combined with a lack of game time, decided to make a move to PSG.

Laporta blames de la Pena – ‘A treacherous betrayal’

The former Barcelona president, who is in the running for re-election on Sunday, told Jijantes that the primary problem was his agent. De la Pena was affectionately known as the baldy during his time as a player. Sport carried his quotes.

“What happened with Dro was a betrayal. If it had happened with Jorge Mendes, it wouldn’t have been like what happened with the baldy. It was a disgrace and a treacherous backstab.”

“With the PSG president, we established a market relationship, with more money involved, to maintain cordial relations with Barca, and I’m grateful for that. I felt bad for Hansi. He was given a first-team role at the expense of players who deserved it more because they were more invested in Barca. He’s an agent because of his history with Barcelona; he had a special relationship with them, and I thought it was a treacherous backstab.”

It is certainly a bold approach from Laporta, given current first-team players Gavi and Eric Garcia are both still represented by de la Pena.

Laporta on Vlahovic and Cancelo

Meanwhile Barcelona have been linked with Juventus forward Dusan Vlahovic, but Laporta dismissed the idea that they would move for him.

“There’s nothing, we don’t need to sign any players, but we’re always trying to strengthen the squad.”

The prospect of signing Joao Cancelo – who is represented by Jorge Mendes – seemed to excite Laporta more.

“He’s doing fantastically, he has a lot of class, he made the pass for the penalty to Olmo, this is what I like. We must experience a more uninhibited Barca.”

‘Deco will decide on Rashford stay’ – Laporta

A constant source of speculation this season has been the future of Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford, but the general current of reporting is that he will remain at Barcelona.

“He has a level of assists and goals that we’re very happy with. We could extend the loan further; it depends on what Deco wants. There are options, including exercising part of the purchase option with United, and we’ll see about the rest. Rashford has settled in well; he’s a great guy, and he’s very involved with the Foundation.”

The Blaugrana reportedly have a €30m buy option in the loan deal, and are supposedly keen on exercising it. For his part, Rashford has publicly declared a desire to remain at the club, but it could hinge on their salary limit situation this summer.