Last summer, Lionel Messi almost left Barcelona after submitting a transfer request; the 34-year-old had been anticipated to sign a new five-year contract, with his pay set to be cut in half.
Messi has spent his entire career at Barcelona, rising through the ranks of the club's academy before making his senior debut in 2003 and scoring 672 goals in 778 appearances.
"Despite FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi having achieved an agreement and both parties' clear determination to sign a new contract today, this cannot happen due to financial and structural difficulties," the club said in a statement (Spanish Liga regulations).
FC Barcelona Posted on their official Twitter page
LATEST NEWS | Leo #Messi will not continue with FC Barcelona
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) August 5, 2021
"Messi will not be remaining at FC Barcelona as a result of this predicament." Both sides lament that the player's and the club's wishes will not be realized in the end.
"FC Barcelona expresses its heartfelt gratitude to the player for his contribution to the club's advancement and wishes him the best of luck in his personal and professional life."
Barcelona has been negotiating with vice-captains Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets, and Sergi Roberto about lowering their pay by 40% in exchange for contract extensions in order to comply with La Liga's financial fair play standards for the upcoming season.
They've also tried to sell a number of high-paid players, including Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele, Philippe Coutinho, Samuel Umtiti, and Martin Braithwaite, but have failed to find a buyer for any of them.
A €2.7 billion investment in La Liga from private equity firm CVC was expected to assist Barcelona overcome their problems, but the cash injection has not been sufficient to keep Messi at the club.
Despite his 50% wage drop, Barcelona has been unable to register Messi since his new deal would violate the club's intended wage structure for the 2021/22 season.
"The first reason is that they are experiencing financial difficulties as a result of the pandemic. The second reason is that under Spanish football's financial fair play laws, he could not be offered another contract of the same magnitude.
