Presidential candidate warns Barcelona could become the next AC Milan

Barcelona need a model change to avoid falling into a deeper crisis.

The shortcomings of the Barcelona board have been well-chronicles but a candidate to become the next club president has issued a warning about the possible long-term effects of those failures.

According to Diario Sport, Victor Font warned that the Catalan giants were in danger of becoming the next AC Milan, a club that used to be a powerhouse in Europe only to come crumbling down after years of mismanagement.

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"“We have it very clear that if there is not a project similar to ours, then we run the risk of becoming the next Milan, a club with a lot of titles but that does not compete anymore, or we put at risk the ownership model.”Source: Diario Sport"

He went on to mention that if he were to become the next president, he would look to bring in renowned people from the world of sport, business, technology, audiovisual and e-commerce to help restore the club.

Since Joan Laporta’s presidency ended, successors Sandro Rosell and Josep Maria Bartomeu made it their mission to steer the club in their own direction and away from what Laporta initially built.

But they seemed so intent of proving that they could run the club better than their predecessor that they let that animosity turn into a battle of egos instead of what was best for Barcelona.

Years of financial mismanagement whether it be lawsuits, the I3 Ventures debacle or the transfer bans, has led the club into where it is now.

Barcelona rested on its laurels instead of continually improving.

The sporting side is a mess with the board resting on its golden generation and failing to plan ahead for the inevitable departures of the likes of Carles Puyol, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta.

It’s when a club is at its best that it should add a fresh piece here or there not only to refresh the squad but to have a plan once a club legend departs. Barcelona decided to go on standby until it was too late.

They went into a panic once PSG signed Neymar and then poorly invested the money they got from it that they need to sell a number of players now to balance the books. That’s one of the reasons why they want to sell Arthur to Juventus.

With one year left in the Bartomeu presidency, he and those in inner circle are in survival mode looking out for themselves and trying to ensure that when they leave, they have someone in place that will continue their vision of the club.

The legacy they want to leave behind is the infamous “Espai Barça” that was approved back in 2014. Six years later, it’s no closer to being completed with the cost of the project growing more and more from the budgeted €600 million.

Barcelona do run the risk of becoming what they were before Frank Rijkaard took over. A club who won a title here and there but who were well below Real Madrid domestically and behind  a number of teams in Europe.

Whether or not they fall as low as Milan who can no longer compete in Italy and who have trouble with UEFA regarding Financial Fair Play remains to be seen. What is clear is that whoever becomes the next Barcelona president in 2021, is going to inherent a number of problems and will have their work cut out for them.