Second Term
Joan Laporta has emerged victorious in the elections to become the next Barcelona President, winning over 54% of the vote.
In his previous run as President, from 2003 -2010, he oversaw one of the most successful periods in the clubs history as they won 12 trophies. The period saw the emergence of Pep Guardiola as a manager, Lionel Messi become the club’s talisman and the addition of two Champions League titles (2005-2006, 2009-2010) to the club’s honours board after only having won it once previously, in 1992.
However the club Laporta inherits is taking over is in a very different financial position to the one he left, with reported debt of 1.2 Billion euro debt, but it is the future of Messi, whose current contract expires in the summer, that is perhaps his most pressing issue.
Respected journalist Fabrizio Romano, has shared comments that Laporta made on the subject.
Joan Laporta – new Barcelona president – to RAC1: “I will be calling Lionel Messi. Will I convince Leo to stay? It will depend on him, I will do what I can, within the economic possibilities of the club, to make him stay at Barça”. 🔵🔴 @HagridFCB #FCB #Barcelona
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 8, 2021
Messi’s future
Barcelona’s Argentinian forward Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring a goal during the Spanish League football match between FC Barcelona and Deportivo Alaves at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona on February 13, 2021. (Photo by LLUIS GENE / AFP) (Photo by LLUIS GENE/AFP via Getty Images)
The future of Messi, the club’s and arguably the world’s greatest ever player has been an ongoing story for some time.
Both Manchester City, who denied the rumours, and PSG have been heavily linked with the Argentinian superstar in the past and what was once unthinkable that he wouldn’t play his entire career with Barcelona, may become a reality.
Messi, who reportedly earns £122 million a season, is unaffordable for nearly every club that isn’t State backed, but may also now be for the Catalan giants.
We also don’t yet know of course if Messi wants to stay, so no doubt this is a story that will continue to dominate the the club’s news until it is resolved.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City FC | 27 | 39 | 65 |
| 2 | Leicester City FC | 28 | 16 | 53 |
| 3 | Manchester United FC | 27 | 21 | 51 |
| 4 | Chelsea FC | 27 | 17 | 47 |
| 5 | Everton FC | 26 | 6 | 46 |
| 6 | West Ham United FC | 26 | 9 | 45 |
| 7 | Liverpool FC | 28 | 11 | 43 |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 26 | 15 | 42 |
| 9 | Aston Villa FC | 26 | 11 | 40 |
| 10 | Arsenal FC | 27 | 7 | 38 |
| 11 | Leeds United | 26 | -1 | 35 |
| 12 | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 28 | -9 | 35 |
| 13 | Crystal Palace FC | 27 | -14 | 34 |
| 14 | Southampton FC | 27 | -11 | 33 |
| 15 | Burnley FC | 28 | -16 | 30 |
| 16 | Newcastle United FC | 27 | -17 | 27 |
| 17 | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 27 | -8 | 26 |
| 18 | Fulham FC | 28 | -11 | 26 |
| 19 | West Bromwich Albion | 28 | -36 | 18 |
| 20 | Sheffield United FC | 28 | -29 | 14 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 17 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 16 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 16 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 13 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 13 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 12 |
| Gundogan, Ilkay | Manchester City FC | 11 |
| Wilson, Callum | Newcastle United FC | 10 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 9 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 9 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City FC | 9 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace FC | 9 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 9 |
| Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick | Arsenal FC | 9 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 8 |
| Ings, Danny | Southampton FC | 8 |
| Soucek, Tomas | West Ham United FC | 8 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City FC | 7 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallagher, Conor | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 8 |
| Maguire, Harry | Manchester United FC | 0 | 8 |
| Bellerin, Hector | Arsenal FC | 0 | 8 |
| Milivojevic, Luka | Crystal Palace FC | 1 | 7 |
| Hayden, Isaac | Newcastle United FC | 0 | 8 |
| Lundstram, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
| Evans, Jonny | Leicester City FC | 0 | 7 |
| Egan, John | Sheffield United FC | 1 | 6 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 1 | 6 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 6 |
| Tielemans, Youri | Leicester City FC | 0 | 6 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United FC | 0 | 6 |
| Klich, Mateusz | Leeds United | 0 | 6 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 6 |
| Hojbjerg, Pierre | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 0 | 6 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 5 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 6 |
| Kante, N`Golo | Chelsea FC | 0 | 6 |
| Luiz, Douglas | Aston Villa FC | 0 | 5 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 0 | 5 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 13 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United FC | 10 |
| Grealish, Jack | Aston Villa FC | 10 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City FC | 10 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 9 |
| Rashford, Marcus | Manchester United FC | 7 |
| Cresswell, Aaron | West Ham United FC | 6 |
| Digne, Lucas | Everton FC | 6 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City FC | 5 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City FC | 5 |
| Firmino, Roberto | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Ward-Prowse, James | Southampton FC | 5 |
| Werner, Timo | Chelsea FC | 5 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 5 |
| Neto, Pedro | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 5 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United FC | 5 |
| Robertson, Andrew | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Willian | Arsenal FC | 5 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 4 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City FC | 4 |
Source: 101greatgoals.com
