Lionel Messi’s €700 Million release Clause in his contract with FC Barcelona has reportedly expired which means that he is free to leave the club this summer as he has planned. In line with that, he has refused to comply with the club’s protocol which directed him to undergo coronavirus tests before he can join the rest of the team in pre-season training.
Spanish newspaper AS reported that the current contract of Lionel Messi which is expected to expire in June 2021 has clarified that Messi is not bounded by it for the 2020-2021 season. He can decide to wake away from the club for free or extend his contract with the Spanish giants if he chooses to.
Also, a Spanish journalist, Guillem Balague, quoted El Larguero, saying that Messi’s €700 Million release Clause “does not exist in last season’s contract (and the club had not realized?).
“Messi won’t go to squad’s PCR test tomorrow Sunday as going would go against his interpretation of contract -that he is free.”
A new extraordinary twist. As told by @ellarguero, the €700m buy out clause DOES NOT exist in last season's contract (and the club had not realised?).
— Guillem Balague (@GuillemBalague) August 29, 2020
Messi won't go to squad's PCR test tomorrow Sunday as going would go against his interpretation of contract -that he is free https://t.co/gox9owFcnC
Based on this, he has the legal power over FC Barcelona but the Spanish giants are insisting that Messi is bounded by the contract. Barcelona still wants any club that wants to sign the 33-year-old Argentine football icon to pay for Messi‘s €700 million release Clause.
Messi’s €700 Million release Clause: Barcelona want to reach a compromise with Manchester City
Since Monday when Lionel Messi officially submitted his transfer request to Barcelona, it has been reported on various media platforms that he has contacted the manager of Manchester City Pep Guardiola. He and the Spanish tactician had worked together in Barcelona and the 6 times Ballon d’Or winner wants to reunite with his former coach.
Hence, The Mirror claimed that FC Barcelona is considering a compromise between them and City which could see the Premier League club pay £250 million to Barcelona for the services of Messi.
If the compromise works, Messi would overtake Paris Saint Germain and Brazilian forward, Neymar, as the most expensive footballer in the history of football. Recall that Neymar left Barcelona in 2017 for a world transfer record worth 222 million euros. Since then, no club has been able to beat that record.
On the other hand, if the reported compromise deal fails to scale through, it is either that Messi would remain at the club until the official expiration of his contract or take the crisis to a Spanish court.
No Pre-season for Lionel Messi
The latest reports claim that Lionel Messi is still standing firm on leaving Barcelona for Manchester City on a free transfer. Also, the legal team of the footballer has informed the club that their client would not participate in the club’s pre-season.
From the findings of FutballNews, it was gathered that Messi did not attend the PCR test (coronavirus test) scheduled for Sunday morning and his father, Jorge, who doubled as Messi’s agent has insisted that Messi would not attend Barcelona’s pre-season training which would commence on Monday.
This could be in line with Messi’s determination to leave the Spanish giants this summer with the understanding that he does not have anything binding him to Barcelona.
Barcelona sack legal representatives
FC Barcelona have reportedly cut ties with their legal representatives,
Cuatrecasas law firm, over their contract tussle with Lionel Messi. The club believes that the law firm was no longer loyal to them and the firm could have a conflict of interest since it is the same law firm that Messi uses.
This is seen as a sign that Barcelona might drag Messi’s €700m release Clause dispute to court if all out of court negotiations fail. Hence, they would not allow anything to serve as a hindrance to their attempt to get their way through the ongoing saga.
