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Barca president hails best fans in the world
Paul Cuddihy
BARCELONA President Joan Laporta has hailed Celtic supporters as the best travelling fans in the world and is looking forward to their visit to the Catalan city in two weeks time.
Speaking ahead of the first leg of the last 16 UEFA Champions League tie between Celtic and Barcelona in Glasgow, Sr Laporta also spoke of the great bond the two clubs share.
And the Barcelona president is anticipating the game at Celtic Park, which he describes as “a great venue.”
Sr Laporta said: “We are very much looking forward to our visit to Glasgow this week, when we will meet our old friends, Celtic, once again.
“It will be a real pleasure to visit Celtic Park and feel the atmosphere of a great UEFA Champions League night at such a great venue. We have very much enjoyed our previous visits to Celtic and I am sure we will do so again.
“In recent years we have developed an excellent relationship with Celtic, something which we hope to continue.”
Celtic have been working closely with Barcelona club officials as well as the city council and the relevant authorities ahead of the return leg in the Catalan city on Tuesday, March 4.
The Barcelona president continued: “We are also looking forward very much to welcoming Celtic supporters to Barcelona in early March.
“The Celtic supporters are fantastic, in fact the best travelling supporters in the world as we have seen many times. We can assure Celtic supporters that they will receive a very warm welcome when they visit the city.
“I know that Celtic supporters are extremely passionate about their club, a club which I believe, like FC Barcelona, is different.
“We know that supporters will travel in huge numbers to follow their team, but we also know the great reputation of good behaviour which Celtic fans enjoy and clearly we are looking forward to hosting the Celtic fans in the city once again.
“I know that the city council, the police, Celtic FC and FC Barcelona have been working very closely over a number of weeks to ensure that Celtic’s visit will again be a great success.
“There will be special arrangements made in the city to ensure that we do all we can to ensure this is the case. We hope all Celtic supporters enjoy their visit to Barcelona.”
Celtic Chief Executive Peter Lawwell said: “We are delighted to be making another trip to Barcelona, one of Europe’s finest cities. We would like to thank the people of Barcelona in advance for once again hosting our club and our fans in their great city.
“In recent years, our fans have travelled to the city and enjoyed tremendous hospitality and a very warm welcome from the Barcelona residents.
“Once again our fans will travel to Barcelona, looking to enjoy the city, to enjoy football and to represent their club in a positive and friendly spirit.
“Our fans will be looking to support their team in a positive manner, to respect the city and at the same time make more friends as they always do when they travel.
“We are pleased that our supporters have developed a reputation for excellent behaviour when they travel to matches throughout Europe.
“In 2003, our fans were awarded the official Fair Play Awards from both FIFA and UEFA in recognition of their excellent conduct at the UEFA Cup final, when 80,000 fans travelled to Seville.
“Celtic has been fortunate to have developed a great relationship with FC Barcelona. We have very similar histories as football clubs and in recent years have become very close. Like Barcelona, Celtic is different – much more than just a football club.
“Many Celtic supporters travel to Barcelona to watch the Barca team. We know many stories of Celtic fans travelling to the Camp Nou to watch Barca matches in recent years, particularly after Henrik Larsson signed for Barcelona.
“We hope this great relationship with Barcelona continues. We look forward to welcoming all Barcelona supporters to Glasgow for the match this Wednesday and we look forward to making our visit in March.”