Agustí Benedito lodges official protest against Josep Maria Bartomeu
After enduring a torrid summer, the Barcelona president is in for a new battle. But this time around, it will not be scathing media criticism. Instead, Bartomeu will lock horns with prominent club official Agustí Benedito over the presidency of the club.
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Ever since Bartomeu took over as the president, Barcelona have had a bad time off the pitch. The club charged him with correcting ex-president Sandro Rosell’s errors. Instead, he aggravated the club’s problems.
But the other club officials were silent until now. Agustí Benedito has launched a vote of no-confidence against Bartomeu. Barcelona confirmed this fact on the official website with a statement.
The club also confirmed that Benedito needed the support of 16,470 members in order to hold the vote. But Bartomeu has not yet commented on the issue.
Agustí Benedito goes all out against the board
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Meanwhile, Benedito has made his intentions clear. He attended an interview with Sport and here are a few excerpts from the Q and A session :
Q) What did you think of Albert Soler and Robert Fernández’s press conference?
"A) It was a complicated press conference at a really difficult moment and there were contradictions, lies and explanations created to create sensations which don’t correspond with reality. It was as if they were trying to buy time, in line with the board in these past few months."
Q) There should have been a resignation?
"A) Of course. I’ve just launched a vote of no confidence which is about nothing other than them all resigning. In the same way Barça’s a unique club in that the socios choose the board, we can also protest to remove them. It’s a democracy. And those that have taken us into their serious institutional, social and economic situation are not the ones to get us out of it. It’s urgent and necessary for Barça that this board resigns immediately."
Q) If there are elections, will you stand?
"A) In principle, yes."
Q) Could Bartomeu call an early election?
"A) I don’t rule it out, he did it in 2015. He has the football team not in the best harmony, people disagreeing with his management, there’s been a poor transfer window, the economic situation is worrying, Rosell’s in prison and there’s a vote of no confidence. It would be logical for him to do so to reduce the tension."
Bartomeu’s time is up
Reports suggest that Sandro Rosell commands the club as the de-facto leader. While Bartomeu does the formalities, Rosell pulls the strings from behind. Whilst there is no proof to support this theory, Agustí Benedito has confirmed that Bartomeu and Rosell converse regularly over phone.
Next: Top 5 failures for the club this summer
Benedito has been a prominent figure in the governance of the club in the past. He was a close aide of Joan Laporta and is a worthy president. He can truly bring about a change at the Camp Nou.