Barcelona president Joan Laporta ‘invited to leave’ officials’ dressing room following a confrontation with referees after the club suffered a disappointing El Clasico defeat by Real Madrid
Barcelona president Joan Laporta was ‘invited to leave’ the officials dressing after the Blaugrana’s defeat in Sunday’s El Clasico.
Laporta’s team were well-beaten at the Santiago Bernabeu, with goals from Karim Benzema, Federico Valverde, and a Rodrygo penalty enough to see off Xavi’s side.
Tensions ran high following the defeat with the legendary player turned manager of the Catalan side admitting that his team are going through a ‘very bad dynamic and have to change it immediately.’
Barcelona president Joan Laporta was ‘invited to leave’ the referees’ dressing room after quizzing officials following the club’s defeat to Real Madrid
Barcelona boss Xavi was also unhappy with a number of decisions made by the officials during the game
In a report obtained by The Athletic, it was revealed that an unhappy Laporta took to the officials dressing room following the defeat to question the referee about his decision-making in the fixture.
The report stated: ‘Once the match was over and the referee team was inside the locker room, the president of FC Barcelona, Joan Laporta Estruch, accessed it, repeatedly requesting explanations about some situations in the match.
‘Given these events, he was invited to leave the arbitration locker room, without further incident.’
Karim Benzema scored the opener as Real Madrid clinched victory in the 250th El Clasico on Sunday
Laporta came under heavy criticism this summer due to Barcelona’s seemingly erratic financial affairs leading to multiple well-publicised disputes surrounding the team.
However, the 60-year-old recently stated that the club will continue spending in the January transfer window.
‘We are working on the market,’ Laporta told Barca TV.
‘We have had talks with the coaching staff and we intend to improve the squad, which is already very powerful but can still improve more.’
