In the summer of 2000, Luis Figo traded FC Barcelona for Real Madrid in exchange for 60 million euros writing a page for the story of a centuries-old rivalry. The Portuguese, winner of the Ballon d'Or, was the best player of that Blaugrana squad and, out of the blue, he left for the eternal rival. The first game that returned to the Camp Nou is the history of the national competition.
In an interview with El Español, Joan Gaspart told how that signing happened and explains everything in detail and his characteristic style. “The night I was elected president, the best player in Spanish football, Luís Figo, went to Real Madrid. It was a dirty, nocturnal and frightening move by my good friend Florentino Pérez. It is not a good start, “he begins to continue with heavy artillery.
“Figo was a traitor. He played it on me. That same night Figo called me and said: “Juan, I have two tickets. One that goes to Madrid and the other to Barcelona”. I said, “I'll go get you at the airport.” He added: “My representative has signed a document with Real Madrid. If I do not sign, he must pay five hundred million pesetas. I will not leave him lying, but if you guarantee that Barça pays that amount, I will stay. “ Florentino's move was sensational. If I signed Figo, great; and if not, he had five hundred million to pay the installments to all his partners. I insisted: I told Figo that we would face that amount. But he asked me to go look for him with a guarantee from La Caixa of five hundred million. It was twelve at night! I couldn't do that. I gave him the guarantee of Barça that we would assume our commitment. And he went to Real Madrid, “he adds.
The operation left the club without Figo but with considerable cash on hand and Gaspart does not hurt clothes for recognizing errors in the management of that great income. “I made a big mistake. After the Figo operation, everyone knew that we had a lot of money to sign. We were in August. Somebody minimally intelligent would have said:” At this point I cannot prepare the squad, I cannot be held responsible. ” But I had been vice president for twenty-two years … and I took responsibility. I signed Overmars, a great player who did not turn things out. My balance: no luck and all mistakes “, judgment.