Barcelona president Joan Laporta has admitted the club’s finances are “far, far worse” than he anticipated, a day after announcing the shock departure of Lionel Messi.
The Argentine superstar’s exit is a huge blow to the Catalan giants who have sought to shift the blame onto La Liga despite years of their own financial mismanagement.
Laporta said the club and Messi had both wanted to sign a new contract, but salaries already represent 110 per cent of the club’s earnings and La Liga’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules prevented them from completing the deal.
Barcelona’s debts exceed 1.2 billion euros (£1bn), a plight exacerbated by the lack of revenue from empty stadiums during the pandemic on top of years of financial problems.
“The club is above everything – even above the best player in the world,” Laporta told a news conference on Friday.
Laporta said that the club had agreed two deals with Messi, firstly a two-year deal made payable over five, and then a five-year deal.
“I said we’d do everything possible to keep Messi at Barça within the economic situation of club,” he added.
“We reached agreement but couldn’t formalise it, because of the club’s economic situation, which means we can’t register the player due to salary limits. I don’t want to go on and on about the situation we inherited, and the awful decisions that were made in the past. We have gone from bad to worse.”
Where Messi turns next appears to be limited given the extortionate wage demands that go hand in hand with being one of the greatest footballers of all time.
Messi was reportedly set to make about 70 million euros (£59m) per year under his new Barcelona contract – a weekly wage of roughly £1.13m.
That sort of astronomical figure would appear to rule out most clubs from signing Messi – aside from state-backed giants like Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City.
Messi is said to have called PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino on Thursday night, according to the Associated Press who report that the French club are assessing the potential revenue that could be generated by signing Messi while also paying him a huge salary and complying with FFP regulations.
While Barcelona’s social media accounts paid tribute to his career, Messi has yet to post anything online about leaving the club he has been at since the age of 13, winning 35 titles. He helped the club win the Champions League four times, La Liga 10 times, the Copa del Rey seven times and the Spanish Super Cup eight times.
If PSG were to sign Messi, he would be reunited with former Barcelona forward Neymar. He would also be the latest free arrival at the French club this summer, following goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, defender Sergio Ramos and midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum. Like Messi, their contracts expired at Milan, Real Madrid and Liverpool, respectively.
Manchester City, who are owned by the Abu Dhabi royal family, may have the desire and connections to sign Messi. But reuniting him with former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola could be complicated financially with the Premier League champions breaking the British transfer record on Thursday by signing Jack Grealish for £100m.
City are also understood to be pursuing the transfer of England captain Harry Kane who is yet to return to Tottenham training as he tries to force his exit.
Lionel Messi’s next club odds
- PSG – 1-2
- Barcelona – 2-1
- Man City – 6-1
- Any MLS side – 16-1
- Chelsea – 18-1
- Man Utd – 18-1
- Inter – 20-1
- Newell’s Old Boys – 20-1
- Juventus – 22-1
- Atletico Madrid – 25-1
Odds via Skybet, correct as of Friday 6 August
Additional reporting by Associated Press
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3AfLOIL
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