Barcelona warning over fans fears

Barcelona vice president Albert Vicens has warned fans a vote of no confidence against the current board could delay or even scupper moves for the likes of Emmanuel Adebayor and Andrei Arshavin.

Joan Laporta faces a battle to keep his position as president with a vote set to take place on Sunday to decide whether to oust the board, after Barca fan Oriol Giralt collected the 5882 member signatures required to request a motion of censure.

Barca have been busy in the transfer market this summer and still have Arsenal striker Adebayor and Russia star Arshavin in their sights.

But Vicens has warned fans that if Giralt succeeds neither of them will be coming to the Nou Camp and nor will anyone else.

"As usual, everyone says what they want to, but the statutes say that the faculties of the interim board are limited," he said.

"If they are limited, they are not allowed to buy players nor to bring them in on loan. They can only pay the commitments that the club has already assumed, but not to assume new commitments such as contracts or buying and selling players.

"If they were the same powers that a board of directors would have, you would not say that they are limited.

"An interim board would find itself with many difficulties with important players who have important contracts.

"All this must be said and it's not scaremongering, it's the reality.

"At the moment this would provoke the creation of a board which has inferior management capabilities and is weaker than a board of directors."

But Giralt rubbished those suggestions, branding Laporta a liar.

"The president of the club lied twice last night. He stated that an interim board cannot carry out transfers or buy players. That is rubbish because the interim board can perform normal activities."