‘There was a big difference’… Barcelona president Joan Laporta explains why the transfer of Nico Williams fell through | OneFootball

FC Barcelona recently announced the arrival of Marcus Rashford from Manchester United on a loan deal with the Catalan club, with the option to buy. The English attacker looks set to be Hansi Flick’s new left-wing option in the squad.

It has been very evident since the beginning of the summer transfer window that one of the club’s priorities was to sign a new player for the left wing. Ansu Fati had been loaned out to AS Monaco, and the club needed depth.

One player who looked like he would be wearing a Blaugrana jersey this season was Nico Williams. However, the deal fell through and the player signed a 10-year deal with Athletic Club. Eventually, Barcelona settled on Rashford.

Laporta explains why the Nico Williams transfer fell through

Joan Laporta is not the kind of man to be pushed around. (Photo by Eric Alonso/Getty Images)

Club president Joan Laporta, in an interview as quoted by MARCA, has explained why the transfer for the Spanish attacker fell through. He said:

“The signing of Luis Díaz was complicated and we were in the middle of negotiations with Rashford, but Nico Williams’ agent came to us offering the possibility of signing him. Deco told me that we had to listen to the proposal from Nico Williams’ agent. My priority, in principle, was Luis Díaz or Rashford. In these cases, I always trust the sporting directors, who told me that we had to listen to what he was proposing.”

With these words, Laporta made it clear that it was Nico Williams’ entourage that approached the club and not the other way round. However, the president went on to explain that what was promised and what was on table was quite different. He continued:

“There was a big difference between what we were told and what actually happened in terms of payment terms, the agent’s commission… a whole series of variables that indicated the deal wouldn’t happen.”

Laporta then went on to explain that sporting director Deco set a deadline of 48 hours for Nico to accept Barcelona’s terms which he didn’t. He said:

The devil is in the details

Laporta, with his words, has made it abundantly clear that there were some discrepancies in details that led to Nico’s deal falling through. However, Barcelona have moved on and now wrapped up the deal to sign Rashford.

For the second successive summer, the Barcelona – Nico Williams saga has played out in the public eye, but it is safe to say that the club might never ever return for the player in the future. Considering he has signed a 10-year deal, it is almost impossible that Athletic Bilbao ever negotiate to sell him, to any club for that matter.

Regardless, Barcelona continue to march on and as Johan Cruyff would say, “If you have second thoughts about playing for Barça, you are no longer of service to us”.