Daily Post Nigeria
Published
Joan Laporta is leading the race to become the next Barcelona president, after the candidates have been whittled down to only four.
Monday was the deadline for the nine presidential aspirants to submit the signatures they had obtained from club members.
They needed a minimum of 2,257 to make polling day on January 24.
Laporta, who was the Barca president between 2003 and 2010, had the highest with 10,257 signatures.
Victor Font handed in 4,710 signed forms and is expected to be the closest challenger.
Former board member Toni Freixa (2,821 signatures) and ex-vice president Emili Rousaud (2,510) also made the cut.
The signatures must now be validated and on Thursday, Barca will confirm if all four candidates were able to present the signatures required to stand in the election.
Barcelona presidential candidates confirm signatures
Share this story
Photo by Albert Llop/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Barcelona’s presidential elections are creeping closer and there look to be four men left in the running after the candidates presented their signatures to the club on Monday.
Candidates needed at least 2,257 signatures to stand for the Barcelona presidency which saw a number of contenders drop out.
Pere Riera and Agusti Benedito announced early in the day they hadn’t made the cut and have reportedly been joined by Jordi Farre, Fernandez Ala and Xavi Vilajoana.
Farre admitted he “made mistakes” by promising pizza and tattoos as part of his election bid. He also made it clear who he’d be voting for now: “I will go home and on election day I will vote for Joan Laporta.”
Laporta says still time for Barcelona to ensure Messi stays
Issued on:
02/01/2021 - 17:52 2 min
Madrid (AFP)
Barcelona presidential candidate Joan Laporta said there was still time to make a convincing proposal to Lionel Messi, whose contract with the club expires in June. He said he would wait until the end of the season and that gives us time to submit a convincing proposal to him, said Laporta, who is running to regain the position he held from 2003 to 2010.
Messi has been free to negotiate with other clubs since Friday. But, as Laporta pointed out, the Barcelona star said in an interview on Spanish television on December 27 that he had decided nothing about his future.
Barcelona May Target Star Forward Whose Manchester United Deal Will Expire In 2023
12/23/20 AT 7:30 AM Missing Marcus: Manchester United must cope without top scorer Marcus Rashford for at least six weeks Photo: AFP / Paul ELLIS
KEY POINTS
Marcus Rashford is the product of Man Utd academy
He has scored 12 goals in 21 games this season for Red Devils
FC Barcelona may reportedly make Manchester United star forward Marcus Rashford one of their top targets next summer. Barcelona’s presidential candidate Jordi Farre has admitted that among the current forwards in soccer, he likes Rashford “the most in the world” and would like to bring him to Camp Nou.
Man Utd tipped to axe summer signing in favour of Serie A swap deal
Date published: Wednesday 23rd December 2020 6:57 - Jonny Whitfield
Inter Milan should try to organise a swap deal with Manchester United involving Christian Eriksen and Donny van de Beek, according to one pundit.
Both players have largely struggled to show their best form since making their recent moves across Europe.
Eriksen moved from Tottenham to Inter last January but has found it hard to fit into Antonio Conte’s system.
Van de Beek, meanwhile, has not enjoyed the level of game time he would have hoped prior to his recent summer move from Ajax.