"Figo signing for Real Madrid was brilliant, but illegal"

On 24th July 2000, Real Madrid shook the footballing world with a signing which directly hit Barcelona: that of Luis Figo. An operation which, twenty years on, Joan Gaspart calls "brilliant, but illegal:"

In an interview for 'Marca', the Barca president at the time once again gave his version of events. What seemed a joke by Florentino Perez initially ended up becoming one of the biggest controversies in Spanish football. 

"I've already talked about that signing. I've always given my version of events and I think nobody has questioned it yet. If we could do something else? Maybe, but we might have damaged the club's finances. Barca was the number one priority. Always," he pointed out. 

Florentino had promised the signing of Figo during his electoral campaign and he achieved it. Gaspart is still hurt by that deal. "It was a brilliant move, but it wasn't legal."

Gaspart recalled that Figo told him that he had reached an agreement while he still had a Barca contract.

"When he told me what had happened, I told him that was illegal, that we could challenge that in court and we would win. But he was afraid that Real Madrid could appeal after the contract was signed by his agent. 

Nevertheless, Luis Figo tried one last thing to stay at Barcea and he negotiated a new contract which was greatly improved, but he wanted a guarantee to protect him after agreeing to join Real Madrid. 

"I offered him all the legal guarantees, what we were going to fight it, that it was a case of illegality. That I should be came because of that. But no, he wanted a guarantee from La Caixa. It was midnight, I had just been elected president and I had that to deal with. There was no chance I could agree. Because of the lack of time and what he was asking for. I couldn't give in to his request," Gaspart said. 

He says that was a "betrayal." "Of course. How am I not going to feel that?" Gaspart insisted.