Is criticism for Laporta fair after Camp Nou return blunder

Just a few weeks ago Barcelona posted a hype video and Joan Laporta proclaimed the return to the Spotify Camp Nou on August 10th for the Joan Gamper match. Now the club has announced that the return for August 10th has been delayed and there's rumors that Barcelona may even have to play games at the Montjuic again. This isn't the first time the opening of the stadium has been delayed as it was supposed to be ready by November 2024 to a decent capacity. The stadium likely won't be completed until the 2026/27 season, but many fans are angry with Laporta and his tendency to lie so is he to blame?

The Criticism

Joan Laporta is a politician and lawyer which shows his intelligence but also can be seen in his brash proclamations which can sometimes be a tad away from the truth or misjudged statements. He has made promises about Barca's financial situation saying that they'd be back to the 1:1 rule, he said he'd keep Messi and Messi ended up having to leave due to an inability to pay his wages, and now the messages regarding the stadium return. Add with that the recent struggles to register new signings, especially Dani Olmo, there's plenty of criticism to level Laporta's way. When it comes to honesty, brashness, and politcalness there is enough things that are fair to criticize Laporta for.

Why is there still so much Laporta love?

Joan Laporta seems to have the magic touch to bringing back Barca from it's worst periods. When he took over in 2003, Barcelona were in the midst of a trophy drought and turned to a bold, outspoken figure, unapologetically Catalan, who promised, among other things, to bring David Beckham to the club. He was elected on those characteristics and promise, but that promise was broken as Beckham chose the Galacticos over Barcelona and they had to pivot to sign Ronaldinho. A decen choice upon reflection. He also appointed football legend Frank Rijkaard.

One might say he lucked in to Ronaldinho, but the signing lead to a revolution of Barcelona winning titles and jumping ahead of rivals Real Madrid. Eventually, the Ronaldinho and Rijkaard era of Barcelona came to an end and Laporta had to pivot. Again, one might say its luck, but the new era was founded and started with homegrown talent such as Messi, Iniesta, Xavi, Pique, Busquets and manager Pep Guardiola. He may have left in 2010, but his first presidency was marked as one of erratic behavior, inner fighitng, politics, but that brought Barca back to the top.

Now in his second tenure, much has changed but much has stayed the same. The club was going through a turbulent time and needed someone to balance the fallling giant Barcelona was becoming. Once again, you can argue he's been lucky because he didn't want to fire Xavi for Hansi Flick at first, and he stumbled upon Lamine Yamal in the La Masia. Once again, it seems to be Laporta's presidency that bring the new golden era for Barcelona.

The bottom line

The bottom line is that there is plenty of criticism to be had for Laporta as he tends to make outlandish statements and make proclamations that can't be backed up. On the other hand, he has shown that he's a positve figure for the club and there is some sort of method to his madness. It's okay to criticize him when fair, but understand the club is better with him at the helm.