The president of Barcelona, Josep Maria Bartomeu, spoke this Monday after the Board of Directors. Confirmed that Barça will not set the Vote of Censorship until PROCICAT (Civil Protection Plan in Catalonia) decides on the club's request to leave it on stand-by due to the health situation or to transfer it to November 15 and 16.
Then he answered questions from reporters.
Do you plan to face yes or yes the vote of no confidence or does it depend on what PROCICAT decides, does the directive support you?
Everything we have decided today is unanimous. We all think the same and we know that Barça comes first. We are waiting for a response from the Generalitat to see if the conditions to vote on November 1 and 2 continue to be met.
Why do you send a protocol with the Camp Nou as the sole venue?
From the first moment we wanted to make a decentralized vote. There are mobility difficulties due to the pandemic and we wanted people to vote. That is why we ask for 15 days because the logistics are complex. The surprise is when on Thursday they confirm that the vote has to be made on November 1 and 2, not enough day. Therefore, we ask that other dates be set. Right now, since the obligation is on day 1 and 2. We have to do it with a centralized vote.
The club has complained about the president of the polling station, they have tried to stop the count and even went to the Civil Guard. Do you understand that the partners think that you are doing everything possible so that there is no vote of no confidence?
We have the utmost respect for the 20,000 members who sign the Vote of Censorship. Maximum respect for them. In relation to the validation of the Vote of Censorship, nobody tries to paralyze this. Moreover, the club put all the necessary elements for the validation to be done. Nobody has wanted to paralyze anything. The Bureau followed the Statutes and I think it has been quite exemplary. So we want to be happy.
Have you contacted the FEF; Are there audios in which it is noticed that there is a push to Lenglet?
Just when I came in there are audios from the line. And since we know there is this, we are going to review it. And we will take whatever actions are necessary to defend Barça. In the last game, we took time.
There are two assumptions. That they force you to vote on November 1 and 2 or on November 15 and 16. Will you resign?
We have asked that the Vote of Censure be decentralized. In Catalonia and in the rest of the State so that there is participation and the partner does not have to travel. That is why we want the 15-day protocol to prevail. If you answer us that you have to vote on 1 and 2, we will be obliged to do so at the Camp Nou. But when we have the final answer, we will convene the Board. I'm not going to speculate. But we wanted to provide an outlet for people to vote and we are interested in completing the process.
How many times has the resignation crossed your mind?
None. For Barça, for our club, having the best player in history here, and that Messi is still here is the best decision. With the team that exists, a team for the present and the future is being built and this season we have already seen moments of great play. Messi, when the season is over, we will win more than one title.
Do you understand Messi's anger? You have not been left to choose …
I understand all the positions of everyone, empathy is important. But not only Leo, the whole team got angry. It's good to get pissed off because it means there is ambition. We are all ambitious and we want to win. But I've said it before. There was a clause expressing June 10. That date passed. Messi is still at Barça and I hope it will be for many years. What we want is for him to retire at the Camp Nou.
What if PROCICAT says it wants a decentralized vote?
We want it to be decentralized. It gives more health security and is Barça's proposal from day one. But it is that the Barça needs 15 days. If PROCICAT says that it is in decentralized headquarters, I will be happy.
How do you think the pay cut will end?
I have heard the word salary reduction constantly. We speak of adaptation to the economic reality of the club. I don't know how the negotiating table will end. This adjustment of wages will end well, or so I hope. Why are we still in the club? Because you have to make decisions. A Management Commission would not. We are legitimized.
Do you have the feeling that there is a political will from the Generalitat to facilitate a change of leadership at Barça?
I'd like to think not. We, since 2020, have tried to preserve the club of political and media powers. The club belongs to the members. I hope it is not and I hope that the PROCICAT will answer us and tell us the final position to see if the legal and sanitary conditions allow voting on the 1st and 2nd and, if not, look for a date. If we do the Censorship Vote on days 1 and 2, we have no guarantees to mount the decentralized vote. We need 15 days and it's fast. It is necessary to put in agreement with the Catalan Federation, the FEF; the partners must be informed. We have already started doing it but hopefully they will allow us to do so.
He insists that they need 15 days. If there is no explicit rule, isn't it irresponsible to have foreseen it earlier?
Unlike. We have prepared the protocol. Another thing is that the work team of the Generalitat and the club have been modifying the protocol. It is not a new thing, it is on the table the first day. But nothing happens. The validation of the signatures ended on October 9. Then, the club receives a letter from the president of the Board and on October 14 or 15 we send the mailing. There were three weeks of time for it to take place on November 1 and 2. Always providing different venues to encourage voting and to preserve health. When we have the response from the Generalitat, we will meet. Until then, we are waiting.
Are you worried about being the first president in history expelled from Barça by a Vote of Censorship?
I have no fear of being expelled. But it is important that Barça must express itself. Before the Censorship Vote, we will explain the management of the club. We have won 22 titles in the last decade and only in the last decade we were left blank. If it were for football issues, we have 22 titles. We want to continue to persist. Of course, depending on the result of the vote, it will be necessary to see if the elections are before or after. There is no reason to resign.
What message do you have for the signers of the Vote of Censorship?
That we are going to put ballot boxes to vote. The partner must decide whether this Meeting should continue or not.
Don't you think that it is very reckless in the face of the risk of outbreaks for the social mass to be summoned at a specific point?
I insist. We have presented a decentralized protocol in mid-October so that we could make a decentralized vote in 21 venues. After the letter we received last week, as we did not have the fifteen days, we had to present a new regulation. But we want a decentralized vote.