Barça's Election Sparks Clash: Laporta Fires Back at Xavi as Messi Debate Heats Up

Hot remarks on the eve of Barça's elections

Inside Barça's Election: Laporta vs Xavi

Juan Laporta, Barcelona's presidential candidate, responded today publicly to strong remarks by Xavi Hernandez, the club's legend.

Xavi, in a recent interview, accused Laporta of letting him down as coach and said Messi's return was blocked.

Laporte replied in comments cited by Sport: 'Xavi's interview hurt me. When I read it, I think of Flick. Being president means making hard decisions'.

He added: 'With Xavi, it appeared we would keep losing, yet now results show otherwise under Flick, for the moment anyway'.

He continued: 'What pains me is that Xavi let himself be used as a tool. To hurt me, he drew on people from my circle (Alejandro Echivaría). They defended him when it was unacceptable, as did Justi'.

He concluded: 'Xavi wants to smear my image, and others exploit the situation. I understand Victor Font is trying to taint the electoral process. He seems to enjoy filing false accusations, and that hurts Barca's real fans'.

Note to Barca fans: keep your popcorn handy; this election drama is longer than Messi's tenure at the club.

Punchline 1: This Barca saga is so dramatic that even Messi would request a contract extension just to stay away from the headlines.

Punchline 2: In this election, the only thing missing is a referee blowing a whistle every time someone tweets: 'Offside!', folks.