Amid public relations crises for Barcelona and Manchester City, the English newspaper The Telegraph published an opinion article suggesting that Guardiola's situation is not easy – not only are his achievements at Manchester City being questioned, but his accomplishments at Barcelona are also under scrutiny. Below is a complete translation of the opinion article.

UEFA has received a new batch of documents alleging that Barcelona paid 8.4 million euros to José María Enríquez Negreira, the former vice president of Spain's refereeing committee.

While Pep Guardiola's legacy as manager at Manchester City faces increasing scrutiny, his achievements at Barcelona could also come under question. It has not been an easy week for the 53-year-old manager: he publicly backed Manchester City's owners in their dispute with the Premier League, but has remained silent on the latest developments in Spain's explosive "Negreira case."

The case involves allegations that Barcelona paid 8.4 million euros (approximately 7.2 million pounds) to José María Enríquez Negreira, former vice president of Spain's refereeing committee, between 2001 and 2018 – a period when Guardiola served as Barcelona's head coach from 2008 to 2012.

UEFA has been investigating these payments since 2023; on Thursday, European football's governing body announced it had received new documents related to the case.

The source of these documents? None other than Barcelona's arch-rivals, Real Madrid. Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez warned earlier this year that his club was gathering evidence to investigate what he called "the biggest scandal in history," and it appears his dossier has now been submitted.

"Barça is innocent"

Real Madrid stated: "The complaint submitted by our club contains substantial documentation and evidence of extremely serious facts that directly affect the integrity of competition and confidence in the refereeing system."

Barcelona has consistently denied any wrongdoing, claiming that payments to Negreira were for match observation and technical reports. In 2023, Barcelona president Joan Laporta insisted: "Let me be clear: Barça never bought referees, and Barça never intended to buy referees, absolutely not."

These payments first came to light through a tax investigation into Negreira's company, Dasnil 95. Due to the significant time elapsed since these payments, LaLiga was unable to launch its own investigation, as the statute of limitations had expired.

In 2023, Guardiola said: "When the verdict comes out, I'll say what I think. Barça is innocent, Laporta is innocent, unless there is evidence to the contrary."

Speaking about his Barcelona team that lifted the Champions League trophy in 2009 and 2011, Guardiola added that they won all their titles because they "were much better than their opponents."

UEFA stated that the documents provided by Real Madrid were "substantial" and confirmed that the governing body's investigators would assess them as part of their "ongoing investigation."

Barcelona's response to Real Madrid's intervention was a statement clarifying explicitly that no new proceedings have been initiated against them.

The club stated: "UEFA's statement confirms receipt of documents submitted by Real Madrid and indicates that investigators will assess them as part of the existing investigation."

"The same document explicitly mentions 'ongoing investigations and reviews' in two places. Therefore, it does not announce the beginning, resumption, or reopening of any proceeding, nor does it make any assessment of the substance or merit of the provided documents."

"It will be up to the investigators to decide what action, if any, they deem appropriate regarding these documents. To date, they have made no new requests of FC Barcelona, nor have they forwarded Real Madrid's complaint to the club. Should they do so, the club will respond accordingly, as it has done so far."

If Barcelona is found to have engaged in "any activity aimed at manipulating or influencing the result of a match," it could face a Champions League ban.

However, what is most concerning for Guardiola is that, rightly or wrongly, any adverse decision against his former club could taint his achievements during his time at Camp Nou. With his current club, Manchester City, still embroiled in controversy, the timing of these latest developments could not be worse.

The same applies to Manchester City CEO Ferran Soriano, who finds himself in a difficult position. Soriano held senior positions at Barcelona between 2003 and 2008 before joining Manchester City in 2012.

Another figure who held key roles at both clubs is Txiki Begiristain, who served as Barcelona's technical director and later became Manchester City's director of football until his departure in 2025.

Currently, there is no indication of any personal wrongdoing by Guardiola, Soriano, or Begiristain.

Traduzido por IA.

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