A rotten state of affairs in boardroom of Camp Nou

Barcelona’s reaction to the news that it had been banned from making transfers by Fifa has shown yet again that the Camp Nou club’s directors operate at a level well below that of its football team.

Fifa announced on Wednesday that Barca had broken youth transfer rules and could not sign any new players for two transfer windows.

Club president Josep Maria Bartomeu’s reaction was to claim he favoured Fifa’s rules against the “trafficking” of youngsters by unscrupulous agents and clubs, but his club’s La Masia academy provides such an excellent all-round education for youngsters that it should be exempt from the rules.