The Japan Times - Key challenges for Laporta in second Barca term

The 64-year-old has several aims for his second spell leading the Catalan club.

Over the past five years Laporta has helped Barca reestablish themselves among the European elite, and AFP Sport looks at what the club's next goals are.

Replace Lewandowski

In the short term, Barcelona are on the hunt for a world-class centre-forward, with Atletico's Julian Alvarez the primary target to replace Robert Lewandowski.

The Argentina international has not hidden his desire to leave the Spanish capital for Camp Nou, but a deal may prove tricky with Atletico upset by Barcelona's approach.

Atletico rejected a 150 million euro ($171m) offer from Real Madrid for Alvarez, which further complicates Barca's position.

In recent days Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane has also been linked with Barca.

Navigate Mourinho's Madrid

Relations between Spain's two biggest clubs have deteriorated sharply over the past year.

The collapse of the European Super League alliance and the ongoing Negreira sports corruption case have left Barcelona and Real Madrid at loggerheads.

Los Blancos' failure to win a major trophy for two years has ramped up the pressure on the embattled Perez and his appointment of Jose Mourinho suggests a return to the all-out war between the clubs between 2010-12.

Barca's dominance within Spain since Hansi Flick arrived now faces the Mourinho challenge which wore down Pep Guardiola and led to him departing.

Champions League dream

Since Barcelona won their fifth European Cup in 2015, powered by the Lionel Messi, Neymar, Luis Suarez frontline, they have struggled in Europe.

After dropping into the Europa League in 2022 and 2023 for the first time in almost two decades, Barcelona have rebuilt themselves into one of Europe's strongest sides.

They have won three La Liga titles in the last four years, but crave success on the continent.

The next step is lifting the Champions League trophy, which Flick and his players have clearly stated is their main ambition.

"There are two things I want in life -- firstly, that we win the Champions League," said the German coach.

Finish Camp Nou

Flick's second hope is to coach Barca at a "fully finished" Camp Nou, which is another of Laporta's major projects.

The reopening was delayed by a year but fans were happy to return to the club's partially rebuilt home in November 2025.

The third tier still needs to be finished and the stadium's roof will be added next summer, which will likely mean a temporary return to the Olympic stadium on Montjuic at the start of the 2027-28 campaign.

Currently Barca's goal is to reach the full capacity of 105,000 by April 2027, although history suggests delays are more than possible.

Further building work around the stadium is also needed to complete the "Espai Barca" project.

"It will be the best (stadium) in the world," said Laporta on Wednesday.

"It will generate a lot of revenue so that La Liga can grant us 'fair play' approval to consolidate our financial strength."

Bolster finances

Barcelona were in a perilous economic position when Laporta returned, with the chief saying he had brought the club back from the dead but they were still "in the ICU".

The president was criticised for his decision to activate several financial 'levers' to raise enough money for signings including Lewandowski, Raphinha and Jules Kounde.

The strategy has helped Barcelona return to the top of Spanish football, although questions remain over its long-term sustainability.

This summer they have splashed out 80 million euros ($91m) on Anthony Gordon from Newcastle already, with the club on a better footing financially.

However at times they have clashed with La Liga over their strict financial fair play rules for player registration, resulting in Dani Olmo being ineligible to play for a short period in January 2025.

Back at Camp Nou, Barca hope they are on the road to riches again, or at least able to operate consistently under La Liga's one-to-one spending rule.

T.Ueda--JT