In what is expected to be a big blow to the aspirations of clubs like Manchester City and PSG, Barcelona has announced the coming to an agreement of a new deal between the Catalan club and one of the greatest footballers of all time, Lionel Messi.
The newly crowned South American COPA cup champion with Argentina had become a free agent at the end of June and with the poor financial situation of Barcelona was expected to entertain offers from other big clubs around the globe but the latest news is one that has taken the sporting world by storm.
CBS soccer insider Fabrizio Romano initially reported that the deal between the two sides was agreed upon weeks ago with only details remaining to be ironed out before it was made official.
Messi, 34, is expected to take a significant salary cut, amounting to 50 per cent off his previous salary at the Catalan club.
Barca’s financial problems are such that new signings Memphis Depay, Sergio Aguero, and Eric Garcia have not yet been registered to play due to La Liga’s strict salary cap rules which dictate that big earners must be sold for new arrivals to be eligible to play competitively.
The road to Messi’s contract has been a long one. Details of the eye-popping numbers of his previous contract were leaked amid his bid last year to leave the only professional club he’s ever played for.
Last summer the superstar attempted to activate a clause that would have allowed him to become a free agent, only for Barcelona to threaten to oppose the legality of the move in court. Ultimately, Messi relented and returned for the final year of his deal which expired a couple of weeks ago.
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