Barcelona club president Josip Maria Bartomeu is adamant that a difficult year on and off the pitch will ultimately make the Catalan institution a stronger one in the long term, as they try to put to bed the transfer saga surrounding Brazilian forward Neymar.
Bartemeu told The Times: “We have learned a lot this past year. A lot of the things that have happened have not been positive but in a sense they have all been good experiences, because they have informed what we will do in the future.”
“Maybe we feel that in some aspects off the pitch (in terms of suffering an image crisis): the problem with FIFA and the young players, the issue with Neymar.”
“Some think in the Neymar case we were not transparent. It is the complete opposite. We were completely transparent. No other club in the world has to do that or would do that.”
Allegations regarding Neymar’s transfer from Santos have claimed that some €38 million was not declared, resulting in an investigation into tax fraud.
