Ronald Koeman has settled his feud with FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta. To emphasize the good harmony, Laporta attended the golf tournament organized by Koeman in Barcelona on Friday.
Koeman was fired as coach of FC Barcelona in 2021 after just over a year, after which he regularly spoke critically about Laporta. For example, the club legend, who shot Barça to the European Cup I in 1992 from a free kick, called the president’s behavior “disrespectful”.
The presence of Laporta on Friday at Koeman’s annual golf tournament in Barcelona was therefore all the more remarkable. The two seized the moment to say that they had recently settled their quarrel.
“The Barcelona club is the most important thing. Sometimes things are more important than a conflict between two people,” Koeman told Spanish media, including the Spanish sports newspapers Mundo Deportivo and Sport.
Laporta acknowledged that there was disagreement with Koeman. “But Ronald is not only a Barcelona legend, but also a great person and that unites us. We both had the same feeling. What was going on between us was actually about nothing. It was easy to make up again.”
The two settled the quarrel while drinking carajillo, a Spanish coffee with a shot of strong liquor. Laporta emphasized that the peace pipe had been smoked at his instigation. “But that was thanks to our mutual friends. The carajillo also cheered us up a bit more.”