Barcelona boss dismisses Gundogan's FFP claim despite Lewandowski admission

Tom Weber

• Updated: 3 Sept 2024 16:34 BST
• 4 min read

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has come out with some rather explosive quotes regarding Barcelona's financial situation.

The Blaugrana have started the new LaLiga season in a surprisingly emphatic fashion despite enduring a very tumultuous summer. Xavi was sacked, Barcelona missed out on top target Nico Williams and had to offload several players to be able to register new signing Dani Olmo.

However, amid all of this, the official club line was always that the days of Barcelona's financial problems were over. This was directly communicated by president Joan Laporta and Xavi's failure to tow that line was reportedly one of the reasons why he was relieved of his duties.

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Hansi Flick has proven to be a much more pliable head coach, but that has not stopped news of Barcelona's problems from filtering through to the media. After all, €62 million arrival Olmo missed the first two LaLiga games quite clearly due to the Catalans' inability to register him.

Laporta on Gundogan

To be able to ensure Olmo's eligibility, Barcelona had to offload several players such as Clement Lenglet (Atletico Madrid), Vitor Roque (Real Betis) and Ilkay Gundogan (Man City).

The latter deal in particular laid bare just how desperate the Blaugrana had become. Despite still being under contract for two years, the German was pushed out of the club after just one season and allowed to re-sign for Man City on a free transfer.

Gundogan even revealed in a social media post that his exit would help the Catalans financially, but president Laporta is having none of it. He has now claimed that the 33-year-old's exit was purely for sporting reasons despite also admitting that star striker Robert Lewandowski was ready to take a pay cut during the summer.

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"After a meeting with Flick and evaluating the situation of the squad, he decided that he wanted to leave," Laporta insisted. "It was exclusively a sporting decision. With the addition of Dani Olmo, there was a player with a role similar to Gundogan's.

"It was a sporting decision made by the player and the club. I've heard that it's an economic decision, but it's not." He is also quoted as saying: "At the time, Gundo came without a transfer fee and it was only fair that there was no transfer fee. It has had an economic impact, but the reason was a sporting decision."

Regarding Lewandowski, he claimed: "He's a player committed to the club and I can assure you of that. When he heard that we could make some efforts to achieve [Financial] Fair Play, he offered his contract. I'm very grateful to him, but I told him it wasn't necessary."