MADRID, July 5 (Reuters) - Joan Laporta's five-year reign as Barcelona president could be nearing its end if club members
turn out in large enough numbers to vote against him in Sunday's motion of confidence.
The referendum has been forced by club member Oriol Giralt,
who gathered enough signatures to support his motion
criticising Laporta's administration of the club.
To be successful, the vote against Laporta will need to
have the support of over two-thirds of voters with a minimum
turnout of 10 percent of members entitled to take part.
If that happens, the opposition will be able to force a
presidential election in which Laporta's former aide Sandro
Rosell has said he will stand.
Rosell was responsible for bringing Ronaldinho and Deco to
the club when he was Laporta's vice-president, before resigning
in 2005, saying he was unhappy with his boss's domineering
style.
Laporta presided over the club when it won back-to-back
league titles and the Champions League but has been heavily
criticised for his running of the club over the past two years.
Fans staged several protests calling for his resignation
towards the end of last season after the team failed to win any
silverware for a second successive year.
The club responded by sacking coach Frank Rijkaard and
appointing ex-captain and Nou Camp favourite Pep Guardiola as
his replacement.
In an attempt to revitalise the squad, they have signed
Brazil fullback Daniel Alves and Mali midfielder Seydou Keita
from Sevilla, former youth team player Gerard Pique from
Manchester United and Uruguay centre back Martin Caceres from
Recreativo Huelva.
Guardiola also made it clear that leading players
Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o did not feature in his plans for
next season.
