Barcelona appoint joan laporta as president for the second time


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* JOAN LAPORTA BEAT VICTOR FONT AND TONI FREIXA IN THE THREE-WAY CONTEST * LAPORTA POLLED 30,184 VOTES - WHICH WAS 54 PER CENT OF THE 55,611 VOTES CAST * LAPORTA HAS PREVIOUSLY SPOKEN ABOUT


HIS DESIRE TO KEEP LIONEL MESSI AT BARCA * LAPORTA  ON TWO CHAMPIONS LEAGUES AND FOUR LEAGUES BETWEEN 2003 AND 2010 By PETE JENSON FOR THE DAILY MAIL Published: 16:58 EDT, 7 March 2021 |


Updated: 18:50 EDT, 7 March 2021 Joan Laporta, the man who is convinced Lionel Messi will stay at Barcelona beyond the end of the season, became the club's new president on Sunday night


recording a landslide election victory. Messi, accompanied by son Thiago, had voted in club elections for the first time earlier in the day, and it was Laporta, the 58-year-old lawyer


understood to be Messi's choice, who beat rivals Victor Font and Toni Freixa in the three-way contest. Laporta, who won two Champions Leagues and four leagues when president between


2003 and 2010 polled 30,184 votes. That was 54 per cent of the 55,611 votes cast. He told Sportsmail in an interview in December: 'I can only imagine him (Messi) in a Barca shirt. And I


will do everything possible to make sure he continues to wear it.' His first job will now be to offer the 33-year-old a new deal to keep him at the club for the rest of his career. He


will also need to sit down with the club's creditors to renegotiate the spiraling short-term debt estimated at €720m (£636m). During his campaign Laporta was linked with moves for


Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta and Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero but neither is likely to join the club in the summer. Laporta is backing Ronald Koeman to remain as coach and will not


look to persuade Arteta to leave Arsenal. And those huge debts hanging over the club will mean making sure young players such as Ansu Fati, Pedri and Ilaix Moriba all stay - which will be


Laporta's priority over and above trying to bring in high-earning older players. Laporta's victory came after Barcelona got themselves right back into the title race this weekend.


On Saturday they picked up an eighth straight away win beating Osasuna 2-0 with 18-year-old midfielder Ilaix scoring his first goal for the club. And on Sunday Real Madrid and Atletico


Madrid drew 1-1 to leave Barca just three points behind Diego Simeone's team at the top having played one more game.