FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta reveals ‘shocking’ message to Ronald Koeman back in 2021
- Anweshan Ghosh
- 8 hours ago
- 2 min read
FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta has revealed the conversation with former boss Ronald Koeman after being elected in the 2021 presidential elections. Laporta had to make several decisions after getting elected, and one of them was letting Koeman leave.
The Barça president recently gave an interview to Diario Sport about his upcoming book, ‘This is how we saved Barça', where he revealed the conversation between him and the Barça legend.
The Catalan acknowledged Koeman’s status as a club legend, but he had openly admitted that he did not believe him to be the perfect coach to lead the sporting project of the Catalan giants after Lionel Messi's departure.
As per Laporta, Koeman had asked him whether he trusted him with the job, but the president had clearly stated to him that he was not his preferred boss to lead the team.
“When I became president, Ronald came to see me with his agent, Jansen, and asked me, 'Am I your coach?’” said Laporta. (sic)
He further added, “And I told him that 'Ronald, for me you are a legend; I cried at Wembley, but I have to tell you that you are not.’” (sic)
Laporta also revealed that the Dutchman did not take the message on good terms and was severely disappointed after not getting an ounce of support from the president. The Catalan admitted that he wanted to sack him immediately after getting elected and appoint Hansi Flick, but it wasn't possible as the German was coaching his national team back then.
Since Flick was unavailable, Koeman was given some time to prove the president wrong, but the Dutchman could not. The Dutchman had been sacked after a shocking loss to Rayo Vallecano in the league and was replaced by another Barça legend, Xavi.
“At that time, the relationship with Koeman was affected, but with the passage of time we have recomposed that relationship. Ronald is a great professional and a great person," said the Barça president. (sic)
Ronald Koeman managed to win one Copa del Rey title with FC Barcelona but was eventually sacked after poor performances in the league and the Champions League. Barça were demoted to the Europa League for the first time in their recent history under the Dutchman.
Comments