Barcelona are reportedly set to offer Lionel Messi a deal worth up to four times less than his previous contract in Catalonia in accordance with the wishes of LaLiga.
The World Cup winner previously earned £122million-a-year salary after signing his £491m contract with the club in 2016, but reduced his salary to £65m after the 2019/20 season was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Messi left the club for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 on a free transfer after Barcelona’s financial woes barred them from offering the superstar a new contract.
With the club forced to raise £178m before signing new players during the upcoming transfer window – they are doing everything necessary to secure Messi’s return.
As per Spanish outlet Sport, this means that Barca will look to hand the player a contract worth an estimated £22m-a-year (€25m) in a substantial wage cut.
The proposed deal would tie Messi to his former club for two years, with an option for the player to terminate his contract after the first year.
With Messi’s contract at PSG expiring this summer and neither party likely to want to extend the relationship, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner faces an uncertain future.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta held talks with Messi’s father Jorge, and said the player ‘knows we have him in our hearts’ in a public charm offensive.