Barcelona president Joan Laporta says he has no plans to sign Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
There had been mounting speculation that the Spain international had already reached a verbal agreement to join Barca, but Laporta has underlined that Farbegas is not priority for Barca, telling the Times: “He is not a temptation.
“Arsenal came fishing for our young players. One of them was Cesc. Now he is playing very well at Arsenal. I can’t say any more about this.”
Fabregas has been frequently linked with a return to Camp Nou and the player himself has never hidden his desire to play for the club he supported.
His former team-mate in Barcelona’s Cantera, Gerard Pique, expects him to return to La Liga.
“I still do not know if he will come here next season, but one day he will wear the Barca shirt again because he is a fan and I know that he wants to come back in the future,” Pique said. “He is a player that should play here and he wants to come, but we will have to wait and see when that is.”
Laporta will step down as Barca president in June, and although will relinquish control of the club, Laporta is adamant that, contrary to reports, Thierry Henry will not be used as a makeweight in any attempt to sign Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery.
“He [Henry] has done very well from the beginning,” Laporta said. “He is a gentleman. We appreciate him for his skills as well as a human being. His future is here.”
Laporta also declined to comment on reports that Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney was now a target for Barcelona.
