How Barcelona fell victim to Javier Tebas and La Liga’s meddling in the Nico Williams operation | OneFootball

According to a revelation made by Miguel Galan, Barcelona may have been the victim of a serious breach of trust by La Liga president Javier Tebas during a key phase of their pursuit of Nico Williams.

Just days before the player renewed his contract with Athletic Club, Tebas reportedly shared Barça’s confidential financial information with the Basque club’s board.

This sensitive data, which included interim financial statements and audit reports, was allegedly passed on by Athletic Club officials to Nico and his family in an attempt to stir doubt and create hesitation about a move to Camp Nou.

The intention was to disrupt Barcelona’s ongoing negotiations and retain the player at San Mamés.

Who is to blame here?

Barcelona were very close to finalising the signing of Nico Williams, who had become a top priority.

Everything pointed to an agreement until the player’s camp suddenly demanded guarantees: a clause ensuring his departure if he was not registered, and additional financial protections.

Nico Williams demanded guarantees from Barcelona. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

Barcelona, acting within their long-term planning and fair play commitments, refused these conditions.

What caused this sudden shift in tone from the player’s side? According to the report, the confidential data provided by Tebas to Athletic Club and then exaggerated by Bilbao’s hierarchy caused unnecessary concern within Nico’s camp.

Where is confidentiality?

The move, clearly aimed at destabilising the operation, succeeded in generating mistrust and effectively collapsing the deal.

The blame lies not with Barcelona, who were moving forward with transparency, but rather with those who misused private financial information to alter the trajectory of a player’s transfer.

Barça maintained their stance of not giving in to pressure or setting risky precedents.

In the end, what could have been a major signing for the club fell apart not due to sporting reasons, but because of actions that many see as outside the spirit of fair competition.