BARCELONA president Joan Laporta has moved to quash speculation about a rift between the club and an out-of-form Ronaldinho.

“There is no divorce between Barcelona and Ronaldinho,” Laporta was quoted as saying by Spanish media yesterday.

“We hope Ronaldinho will be back as soon as possible, but at the moment he is suffering some pain and we have to respect that. While he has got this pain we can’t count on him.”

A succession of injury and fitness problems and media speculation about night-time partying have led to reports that Barcelona is prepared to offload the former World Player of the Year at the end of the season.

But Laporta insisted that the 28-year-old Brazilian was still part of coach Frank Rijkaard’s plans. “The coach would like to have Ronaldinho at his disposal, but if that isn’t possible we will just have to carry on without him,” he said.

Barca will meet Schalke 04 in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal next Tuesday.(SD-Agencies)