At a glance
- Former FC Barcelona president called past Real Madrid counterpart Florentino Perez “a cheater”.
- The Catalan made it clear that this is only in a sporting conext however.
- Gaspart’s comments were made before a leage-deciding El Clasico between the two behemoths.
Ex-FC Barcelona president Joan Gaspart called ex-Real Madrid counterpart Florentino Perez a “cheater” while appearing on the No se n’ha parlat prou program ahead of El Clasico.
Overseeing the Blaugrana from 2000 to 2003, Gaspart has often been called their worst ever leader. He allowed Perez to snatch Luis Figo away from him in the former year, and then squandered the funds from the world record sale on misfits such as Emmanuel Petit and Marc Overmars.
Asked about Perez, Gaspar said that “on a personal level, Florentino is a great guy”. “In the professional field he is a crack, outstanding. In the sports environment, he’s a cheater,” Gaspart added.
Joan Gaspart is still bitter about Barcelona losing Figo
It was the Figo debacle that Gaspart presented as the basis for his accusation. He recalled how on the night he was elected as president, Figo called him to warn that a clause had been signed forcing him to leave for Madrid if Barça didn’t pay a 500 million peseta fee.
Figo allegedly asked for a bank guarantee to avoid the operation, but Gaspart refused to give in. “Imagine that I give him the endorsement and he loses. I wouldn’t be sitting here today. Barça’s members would have persecuted me thinking that Barça had paid Madrid’s season tickets,” Gaspart protested.
At Madrid, Figo became a Ballon d’Or recipient in 2000 and a Champions League winner in 2002. Barça had to wait 14 years in total for their next UCL triumph in 2006, but Ronaldinho was also crowned the best player in the world that saved the club during that era – on the watch of Gaspart’s successor Joan Laporta.
