Barcelona have turned down a £29million bid from AC Milan for Brazilian star Rivaldo. Having lost Luis Figo for a world record £37million to arch rivals Real Madrid, new Barca president Joan Gaspart snubbed the offer and immediately accused the Italian club of trying to unsettle the world player of the year.
‘We are not transferring Rivaldo. Not for 13,000 million, 14,000 million or 15,000 million pesetas’, Gaspart said on Spanish radio. ‘Milan want Rivaldo, Rivaldo wants to go to Milan and the only thing remaining is for Barcelona to say si’, Ernesto Bronchetti, Rivaldo's agent, said at the Bernabeu yesterday, where he was finalising details of Fernando Redondo's transfer to Milan.
‘This offer from Milan is real but I think they have only done it to stir things up’, Gaspart hit back. ‘Now I am going to talk to the Italian media and tell them that I will offer all of Milan's players the chance to come to Barcelona.’
‘Milan belongs to a couple of individuals’, he added. ‘But Barcelona and the players belong to all of the club members. It is totally out of order for Milan to publicly state that they are going to take Rivaldo away from our many members.’
Rivaldo has been linked with a move away from Barcelona after a wage dispute with the club. Last week he also criticised Barcelona for the way players at the club are treated. (PA)
