‘It had a strategy’ - Laporta hits back at Perez, accuses Madrid president of deflecting from failures

The war of words between the two Spanish giants has escalated following Perez's claims that the ongoing refereeing investigation, known as the Negreira case, resulted in titles being "stolen" from Madrid. 

The public spat has further strained the already fragile relationship between the two clubs. 

Perez had previously stated that the bond between them was "completely broken," and Laporta's latest comments confirm the deepening rift.

Laporta vehemently denied these allegations, asserting that Barcelona will not stand for what he considers a smear campaign.

The Barcelona president suggested that the inflammatory accusations are a calculated attempt to distract from Real Madrid's relative lack of trophies over the past two seasons.

During a press conference, Laporta did not mince words when addressing Perez's strategy, accusing the Real Madrid president of using Barcelona as a scapegoat.

"I think it was grotesque, but it had a strategy," Laporta stated, according to Marca. "It was meant to divert attention from two years without winning anything, and this has them very worried."

He continued, "They have to justify the unjustifiable somehow, and the best way is to stir up trouble and throw everything at Barcelona. We're not going to allow this. I'm sure we at the club will react."

Laporta framed Madrid's focus on Barcelona as a sign of internal insecurity and promised a strong reaction to any further attacks on the Catalan club's integrity.

"As long as they don't use Barca to cover up their problems, I respect him. When they use Barca, we react," he declared. 

"In that press conference, they tried to use Barca in a grotesque way, spreading falsehoods about a certain issue, stating things that aren't true."

He added that he would not engage with other matters concerning Real Madrid but reiterated his commitment to defending his club. 

"When they talk about Barca, we react forcefully. [Vice-president] Yuste came out and described that press conference, and I agree."

As tensions between the two historic rivals continue to mount, Barcelona is preparing to publicly defend its position. 

The dispute is set to intensify scrutiny on the Negreira case and add another layer of pressure to the on-field rivalry.