Barca hit out at City and Arsenal

Barcelona president Sandro Rosell
has accused Manchester City and
Arsenal of attempting to destabilise
his club by offering significant sums
to youth players but said he was
relaxed over the Premier League
champions' reported interest in
Sergio Busquets.
City, backed by the oil money of
Sheikh Mansour, claimed the
Premier League last season and are
now targeting success in the
Champions League.
To bolster that ambition, Roberto
Mancini is believed to be keen to
add to his City squad and recent
reports have suggested they could
bid for Barca midfielder Sergio
Busquets, while Cesc Fabregas has
also been linked.
Rosell has hit out at City, whose
director general is former Barca
vice-president Ferran Soriano, and
likened their approach to that of
Arsenal, who have taken Cesc
Fabregas, Fran Merida, Jon Toral
and Hector Bellerin from La Masia to
London.
Speaking at the Fórum Fundació FC
Barcelona, Rosell was quoted as
saying in El Mundo Deportivo:
"Manchester City want to take our
players and they want to destabilise
us. It also happens with Arsenal,
who come for our youth team
players and offer them a lot of
money. Now it is happening with
City. We are the enemy to beat.
There are a lot of people who do not
want Barca to do well and want us
not to win."
Rosell remains optimistic that Spain
international Busquets will not be
tempted by a switch to Eastlands.
"We should be calm," he said.
"Busquets is another example like
Messi, Valdes, Xavi, Puyol and the
rest. We have marvellous players
and when they called them they say
they are true Barca players."
Rosell also dismissed any suggestion
that Lionel Messi could be tempted
away from the Camp Nou and said
the club had never received an offer
for the player.
"If any club has asked Messi [about a
transfer], he has put the barrier up.
No offer to buy Messi has ever come
in to us. He has put the brakes on
them all personally. There has never
been an offer from a sheikh to sign
Messi as what the player wants is to
stay at Barca."
Manchester City issued a statement
to deny holding any interest in
Busquets or Fabregas. The club said:
"There's no basis to these claims and
the club has neither made nor is it
planning to make an offer for these
players."