Stay for LaLiga boss not necessary
“Everything is going well,” Barça president Joan Laporta reiterated his optimism that Lionel Messi’s future remains with FC Barcelona during a gala dinner at a charity golf tournament on Thursday. But the reality is different: The Catalans still have a long way to go before a final agreement is reached. Barça suffered a setback in talks with LaLiga, which will not deviate from its previous line on the salary cap and Financial Fair Play regulations.
“I don’t know if Messi will start the season at Barça,” LaLiga president Javier Tebas said on Jugones, a program on TV channel La Sexta, referring to the league opener on Aug. 15. “If there are no departures, it is impossible for Messi to stay at Barcelona.” The 58-year-old confirmed that he had a 30-minute conversation with Laporta about the club’s financial situation and Messi, who has been without a club for the first time in his career since July 1.
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The background is that the financially struggling top club was hit very hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and as a result, the salary cap had to be adjusted significantly downwards by the league. Since Barça is currently still over the limit, the Catalans are only allowed to reinvest a quarter of any savings in the squad. In other words, if the Catalans want to register a player with a salary of €25 million per year with the federation, they must first save €100 million by selling or reducing salaries. According to media reports, the discrepancy currently still amounts to around €200 million.
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As a result, the trio of Memphis Depay, Sergio Agüero, Eric García and returnee Emerson Royal (€9 million to Betis Sevilla), who were signed for free, have not yet been registered. And the extension with Messi, who was the absolute top earner with €138 million gross per season, is still up in the air.
“Messi will not be able to sign on the terms he had in his previous contract. It’s impossible, but I don’t think there is a European club at the moment that can pay that amount. It is not only Barcelona that has problems with this,” Tebas commented. “The decision on whether Messi stays at Barcelona is not mine, but the club’s. We hope they can solve their problems so Messi can stay in Spain. Of course, we want the best players to play in LaLiga. But on the other hand, Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo are gone and the league keeps growing. Serie A and Ligue 1 have not grown as fast, even though they have these stars. We shouldn’t be obsessed with the players. It would be great if Messi stayed, but it’s not mandatory.”
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Tebas stressed that no regulations will be changed for Messi to stay. “Because of the pandemic, there is less revenue and higher losses. Without rules, there would only be more debt. We think that our rules are acceptable and the clubs have to abide by them. The clubs themselves have agreed to the rules. It’s not the first time in recent years that clubs have signed players and not been able to register them. I am sure Barcelona knows how to solve the problem. If not, they won’t be able to sign new players,” the league boss made clear.
FC Barcelona must give up big earners for Messi extension
“Barcelona has always been on the limit. When the pandemic came, they had no buffer. No club has pushed the limits like this one. Barcelona lost €350 million in revenue because of the pandemic,” Tebas described. “Real Madrid’s losses are less. They were able to loan out players with high salaries; that was not the case with Barcelona. Manchester City also lost €270 million in revenue, Paris Saint-Germain €250 million. All the big clubs lost money during the pandemic, Real Madrid is doing very well at the moment.”
With the departures of Trincão, Juan Miranda, Jean-Clair Todibo, Júnior Firpo, Matheus Fernandes, Konrad de la Fuente and Sergio Akieme, FC Barcelona has already been able to collect its first transfers and take names off the payroll. But that is only a drop in the bucket so far. More departures must follow, especially from big earners. This is a complicated undertaking, as these players are not necessarily willing to move to other clubs where they earn less.
Neto, Martin Braithwaite, Philippe Coutinho, Samuel Umtiti, Miralem Pjanić, for whom a loan to Juventus FC is said to be an option, and even Antoine Griezmann are currently considered candidates for sale. Even veteran players like Sergio Busquets or Jordi Alba are no longer regarded untouchable. Further savings could also bring newly negotiated contracts with Barça professionals. According to Goal, for example, new signing Depay has accepted a 30 percent pay cut after less than three weeks.
EXCLUSIVA #JUGONES
@Tebasjavier: “No sé si Messi empezará La Liga en el Barça”.
@Nacho_deAndres pic.twitter.com/wFUYigIjQF
— El Chiringuito TV (@elchiringuitotv) July 8, 2021
