The former representative of Chelsea icon Petr Čech has this week opened up on the saga which almost culminated in his client penning terms with Barcelona.
Čech is for his part of course widely considered one of the standout goalkeepers of his generation.
The Czech’s finest years came on the books of Premier League outfit Chelsea, during which he lifted the English top-flight titles on four occasions.
Had things played out just a little differently, however, such excellence could instead have come in the colours of Barcelona.
Speaking during an appearance on the Vladci Fotbalu podcast, broadcast by FootballAgencies.com, this week, Pavel Zika – the player’s agent during his playing days – was drawn on Čech’s links with the Blaugrana during his time in France with Stade Rennais.
And Zika went on to reveal that a promise on the part of Joan Laporta resulted in the potential transfer falling through:
“I met with the leading candidate for the presidency of the club several times and in the third meeting we were finalizing the details.”
“And then, a discreet Barcelona lawyer, Mr. Laporta, who was an outsider, second or third in the polls, pulled an ace out of his sleeve a few days before the elections: ‘I will bring David Beckham’. That changed everything and the people gave their vote to Mr. Laporta.”
The Blaugrana instead went on to sign Ronaldinho, with Zika, as cited by Diario Sport, having added:
“During his time at Barça, he became the best player in the world, so in the end it went well, but in that way Čech was left without his signing for Barça.”
Conor Laird – GSFN
