http://www.imscouting.com/global-news-arti...ng-claims/7147/?

According to the Spanish media this morning, Chelsea have begun legal action against the claims of outgoing Barcelona president Joan Laporta that the Blues offered himself and current presidential candidate Sandro Rosell a cut in a deal for Ronaldinho .

The claims emerged a couple of weeks ago as part of Barcelona’s typically political presidential election campaign. Outgoing president Joan Laporta fell out with leading candidate Sandro Rosell when the latter was his vice-president and apparently is now campaigning against his former deputy.

Laporta claims in a new book recording his presidency that Chelsea were desperate to sign Brazilian star Ronaldinho in 2004, when the former World Player of the Year was regarded as the best footballer on the planet. Rosell apparently encouraged the deal as Chelsea had offered that the pair share a £7m kick-back as part of the deal.

In his book, Laporta says, "I told him to get it out of his head, that Ronnie was not for sale and I didn't want to talk about it any more but he added: 'Joan, they are giving us a commission of 10 per cent.'

"Sandro kept insisting about the offer of Chelsea pretending he didn't want it to happen.

"He reminded me that if we accepted they were giving us 10m euros to share between us. That attitude made me profoundly indignant."

For his part, Rosell vehemently denied the accusations, threatening legal action against Laporta.

However, Laporta has repeated his claims against Rosell, telling Spanish station RAC1 this week, "I told him directly, twice, once in Madrid and once in Paris" that he was not interested in the proposed cut, after which point, "I started to think badly of him."

Chelsea responded angrily to the claims at the time and a club spokesman said a couple of weeks ago, “It's total nonsense. We never made such an offer."

Now, both Spanish dailies ‘Sport’ and Mundo Deportivo report that Chelsea have enlisted a Barcelona law firm to take action, requesting that Laporta’s book be withdrawn due to the allegations.

Ronaldinho is currently enjoying an excellent season at AC Milan and is pushing for a recall to Brazil’s squad in time for this summer’s World Cup.

GOOD

Laporta portrays himself as the man of the people and the defender of all things barca, but he's really no better than any other sniveling chairman, trying to push his way in front of the camera. Well in Roman, take him to the cleaners for his bullsh*t

Laporta is a class a prick and i hope we take him to the f**king cleaners. He`s obviously said this to try and look a hero to Barcelona fans, show himself as someone who fought for the club.

Laporta is a class a prick and i hope we take him to the f**king cleaners. He`s obviously said this to try and look a hero to Barcelona fans, show himself as someone who fought for the club.

I watched that BBC documentary about his election in 2004, and the subsequent ups and downs of their season. He portrayed himself there as a man of the people and head of a young braintrust of these dynamic thinking football men.

About a year after that, once they won their first title for a while in 2005, most of the guys he brought in (bar Begeristain) left claiming he the power of his position had turned him to an autocrat and an asshole who ran things like a dictator. He put on this false front to BBC to portray himself as a leader by consensus but he's just the same as the rest, he will lie and equivocate in the name of his "whiter than white" football club.

I'm glad Roman's not gonna let this one slide

Tear him a new one, Roman. That'll teach him to slander us.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport...Ronaldinho.html

BARCELONA president Joan Laporta insists Chelsea never offered him a £7million backhander for the sale of Ronaldinho in 2004.

Chelsea were furious after Laporta said former Barca vice-president Sandro Rossell told him there would be commission on the Brazilian's transfer.

But Laporta said: "I never claimed that any representative of Chelsea offered me a commission.

"It was Mr Rossell who told me that if we sold Ronaldinho to Chelsea there was a commission of 10 per cent.

"In no way was I blaming Chelsea for the existence of the presumed commission."

Boy, in those original quotes, it sure sounds like he is saying we were offering the money.

I know this, because he was quoted as writing 'Joan, they are giving us a commission of 10 per cent.'

He is backpedaling so he doesnt get sued. Hopefully Sandro Rossell is sing him too

I hope the trial gets well publicized and everybody hears what a lying, attention-seeking scumbag the man is.

I actually thought Sandro Rosell was a previous president. Turns out he was a subordinate that later resigned from his post in protest of Laporta.

And Rosell is apparently the favorite to be elected Barca's next president. Maybe he can give us Iniesta as a sign of friendship to put all of this unpleasantness in the past...please?