A new development has emerged in the Lionel Messi debacle. With the iconic Barcelona forward handing in a transfer request and the fans erupting in protest against the board, all eyes are on Josep Maria Bartomeu and his handling of the situation. However, according to the latest reports, he is not even willing to sit down with the Argentine.
The 33-year-old has long been frustrated with the direction – or lack thereof – the club is headed. The final straw for the six-time Ballon d’Or winner, who is simply keen on a winning project, was the 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich, with the Argentine later informing the Blaugrana of his desire to leave. Since then, all hell has broken loose at the Camp Nou.
Calls for Bartomeu’s resignation have increased but the president does not appear ready to relinquish power. Many expected him to arrange a meeting with Leo in a last-ditch attempt to convince him to stay but that also appears to be false. La Pulga, who initially wanted to have his contract rescinded so he could leave for free, wishes to come to the table with the Barcelona board in order to reach an amiable solution that suits both party.
However, according to Spanish publication El Periodico, the higher-ups at the Catalan club have informed their captain that there will be no meeting for anything other than negotiating a new contract. In other words, the Spanish giants have told the Argentine that he is not going anywhere.
Messi has a release clause in his contract that is worth a whopping $833M. Man City and PSG are interested in Leo, with the Citizens leading the race, but even Europe’s two mega-rich clubs cannot match that figure. The talisman forward was keen on negotiating a reasonable fee but Barcelona are not open to this route.
There have been suggestions Messi could take the club to court due to the clause in his contract that permits him to leave for free at the end of every season. The club’s stance is that he can no longer exercise this clause as the due date was June 10 but Leo’s legal advisers are arguing that due to the suspension of football, the deadline should be extended. Both parties are keen on avoiding a legal battle but given Bartomeu’s stance, this might be the 33-year-old’s only route out of the Camp Nou.
