Barca could sell naming rights to fund Messi's £80m bonus. Wage bill climbs to £430m

serghei

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This report is from an investigation by a Catalan newspaper, L'Ara. I'm struggling to find/think of a big club that's more mismanaged. How could wages spiral out of control like this? This is a player that's turning 31 at the end of this season.
The club is making profit. How could they be making profit and pick up title after title if they are so poorly managed? A lot of rumors in the press are bullshit. Barca have the biggest salary cap in football, but not nearly by as much as some sources say. The whole affair is pretty over the top.

An article from june 1st 2017 from Daily Mail, one of the sources you quote there, says Barca have a 279m. pounds wage structure, while United for example has a 269m. wage structure. That's with Neymar in the team.

How does the wage bill go up from 279 to 430m in 4 months since Barca have lost Neymar in the meantime, one of the biggest earners in the team. :lol: It's hilarious. Just doesn't make any sense.

According to some sources, Messi wage per year is close to 180m. pounds :lol: That's the conclusion you get if you cross refference articles, and not just any articles, but articles form the same media outlets.

Any person with half a brain knows this is media bullshit.
 
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Solo Toure

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Not really sure what is happening with Barca, drama after drama the club have become a Spanish soap opera.

An £80 million bonus seems like a kick in the balls especially from a club/football legend like Messi.

More than a club eh?
 

Garethw

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£80 million bonus for what exactly? Doing his job and picking up £600k a week wages? :lol::lol:
 

Newman123

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He has every right to ask that especially since he has to carry Barcelona in most of their games.
 

ivaldo

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He has every right to ask that especially since he has to carry Barcelona in most of their games.
He’s doing a great job of leading his club into the shadow of Ronaldos Real.
 

notcool

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No offence but at what point did I complain? The bit you've bolded wasn't a complaint it was an opinion that it's a lot of money which it is. I also said that's he worth what he's paid. You're preaching to the converted here mate.
No, you're correct. I should have said it doesn't make sense think it's sad and at the same time enjoy his football so much.
 

Dec9003

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Its pretty interesting reading some of the comments on this thread.
Any player who wants an 80 million signing bonus on top of one of the biggest possible wages is greedy no question.
Despite this, because it's Messi, it's suddenly fine?
The amount of money being spent just to keep him is crippling Barca financially if you'd believe the article.
If this is true (and I expect that it is) I would have sold him to city or wherever and brought in the next generation of talents.
Messi isn't bigger than barcelona no matter how good he is.
 

17Larsson

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Its pretty interesting reading some of the comments on this thread.
Any player who wants an 80 million signing bonus on top of one of the biggest possible wages is greedy no question.
Despite this, because it's Messi, it's suddenly fine?
The amount of money being spent just to keep him is crippling Barca financially if you'd believe the article.
If this is true (and I expect that it is) I would have sold him to city or wherever and brought in the next generation of talents.
Messi isn't bigger than barcelona no matter how good he is.
Well then why don't Barca sell him?
 

MikeUpNorth

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The squad management of great players as they enter their 30s is one of the hardest parts of running a club. Fergie being so good at it is what allowed him to sustain his success for so long - I wonder what he would decide in this situation.
 

Dec9003

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Well then why don't Barca sell him?
I'd simply put it down to poor management. If he wants that much money it's no longer viable to keep him given his age. Replacing him with the next generation of players would ensure they stay a good team.
 

Fortitude

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I'd simply put it down to poor management. If he wants that much money it's no longer viable to keep him given his age. Replacing him with the next generation of players would ensure they stay a good team.
The posts in here are incredulous. What Messi actually does for Barcelona is so commonplace and intrinsic as to be taken for granted. I don't think people are actually comprehending the void him going would leave. "Just replace with the next generation. Simple" Yeah, no.

You'd need the best passer in the world not named Messi; the best dribbler in the world not named Messi; the next prolific goalscorer not named Messi just to come up to [below] par with what he gives them, not to mention the morale boost and overall psychological impact he has on his team, opposing teams and the fans. He's also a marketing powerhouse who keeps Barcelona at the forefront of social media.

Then you have the actual cost of trying to get these players in, who if they can perform as needed, would cost far, far more to employ than renewing Messi and paying his wages. As I said previously, £80m won't even get you one elite player in today's market, so good luck with getting two or three of them for anything under £200m before even factoring in two or three sets of wages.

There would be anarchy (or lots of white handkerchief waving...) if Barcelona were seen to be the ones pushing Messi out the door. That board would be ousted at the next set of elections, which incentivises them to keep the player before anything else is considered.

Finally, this notion of Messi being too old for one last mega contract - it's as if people are talking about Wayne Rooney here or any other player who has shown a steep decline at around the point a renewal is on the cards. Messi has shown no such decline, and even in decline, unless serious injury befalls him, his next levels down are still superior to any one or two players they could get in to replace him.

It would actually be incredibly bad business for them to send him on his way.
 

Dec9003

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The posts in here are incredulous. What Messi actually does for Barcelona is so commonplace and intrinsic as to be taken for granted. I don't think people are actually comprehending the void him going would leave. "Just replace with the next generation. Simple" Yeah, no.

You'd need the best passer in the world not named Messi; the best dribbler in the world not named Messi; the next prolific goalscorer not named Messi just to come up to [below] par with what he gives them, not to mention the morale boost and overall psychological impact he has on his team, opposing teams and the fans. He's also a marketing powerhouse who keeps Barcelona at the forefront of social media.

Then you have the actual cost of trying to get these players in, who if they can perform as needed, would cost far, far more to employ than renewing Messi and paying his wages. As I said previously, £80m won't even get you one elite player in today's market, so good luck with getting two or three of them for anything under £200m before even factoring in two or three sets of wages.

There would be anarchy (or lots of white handkerchief waving...) if Barcelona were seen to be the ones pushing Messi out the door. That board would be ousted at the next set of elections, which incentivises them to keep the player before anything else is considered.

Finally, this notion of Messi being too old for one last mega contract - it's as if people are talking about Wayne Rooney here or any other player who has shown a steep decline at around the point a renewal is on the cards. Messi has shown no such decline, and even in decline, unless serious injury befalls him, his next levels down are still superior to any one or two players they could get in to replace him.

It would actually be incredibly bad business for them to send him on his way.
It wouldn't neccesarily be simple to replace Messi with new players, but overall I believe it's the right thing to do.
They already have Dembele and once he's back that's one of the front three that they play sorted. Then you have Suarez who is still incredible so in reality you don't need to find all these players you suggested.
When you have a player who is 31, giving them 80 million simply to stay is incredibly bad business no matter who he is.
The last two seasons haven't exactly been stellar for Barcelona because their players are all declining.
If you spend a ton of money keeping Messi and can't strengthen elsewhere they'll simply continue to fall behind.
Say they got in someone like Mbappe, who I know is currently at PSG but it's a loan so there is still a chance they could snatch him; then Mbappe, Suarez and Dembele would be a fantastic front three next season.
Yeah Mbappe would cost a lot more than the 80 million Messi wants, but he's also a hell of a lot younger and has an actual sell on value.
Plus the idea of the board getting into trouble if they let Messi go isn't neccesarily a good one. The main thing that should matter is the state of the club, and when your star player is kicking up a fuss deciding he's worth 80 million just to stay then it's time to go.
Let everyone know that Messis demands are absurd, and that you'll be letting him to because he's not bigger than the club.
 

Thunderhead

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It wouldn't neccesarily be simple to replace Messi with new players, but overall I believe it's the right thing to do.

Say they got in someone like Mbappe, who I know is currently at PSG but it's a loan so there is still a chance they could snatch him; then Mbappe, Suarez and Dembele would be a fantastic front three next season.
I don't think they could as I'm sure it's a promise to buy deal at the end of the loan, sure the deal is already done and I'd be surprised if there is any getout clause apart from if he had a career ending injury
 

Dec9003

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I don't think they could as I'm sure it's a promise to buy deal at the end of the loan, sure the deal is already done and I'd be surprised if there is any getout clause apart from if he had a career ending injury
Yeah true. Mbappe was just off the top of my head in fairness. I'm sure Barca could think of somebody to buy though.
I'm not even sure if letting Messi go would be the right thing, but handing 80 million over to him would make me sick if I were a Barca fan.
Imagine if a prime Rooney had asked for a 30/40 million sign on fee? The Caf would be in proper meltdown.
 

Fortitude

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It wouldn't neccesarily be simple to replace Messi with new players, but overall I believe it's the right thing to do.
They already have Dembele and once he's back that's one of the front three that they play sorted. Then you have Suarez who is still incredible so in reality you don't need to find all these players you suggested.
I'm a huge fan of Dembele, and think he has the potential to go on a be a player of his generation, but, potential is just that and is by no means a sure thing. Dembele, seriously curtailed via injury or otherwise just not proving himself, is an unknown quantity as far as Barcelona are concerned. He's also too inexperienced to have anything like the anchor of being a player hoping to cover for the shortcomings of that team without Messi. The burden of expectation is suffocating at the best of times; one can only imagine what it would be like at a time of complete upheaval.

Suarez has shown a steep decline over the last year; he hasn't been 'incredible' for quite some time - if anyone was to be sold on, it should be him whilst they can still get a fair penny for him. He's older than Messi, a lesser player and one whom Messi can directly cover for if needs be. The same cannot be said in reverse as no one player can cover for Messi.

Putting eggs in the proverbial basket post-Messi you suggest is far more risky and potentially disastrous than waiting for Messi's level to drop to something superior to any of them (anyway) as he ages.

When you have a player who is 31, giving them 80 million simply to stay is incredibly bad business no matter who he is.
'£80m' is not the awe-inspiring number it used to be in the world of football. Like I've said a few times in here, that amount won't even buy you a single top class player anymore. And when you're talking about replacing the best player on the planet, unless you have some truly exceptional youth (potential all-time greats) coming through, you are going to have to spend a fortune. Messi is also 30, not 31.

For the record, I think there's only two players on earth you give this kind of contract to at 30 and that's because they have almost a decade of performance with no signs of certain decline behind them. They've both actually shown a substantial capability to modify their game as Father Time takes away physical prowess, which suggests a player who can be of great use to a side for the duration of the contract, and if not that, then the majority of it.
The last two seasons haven't exactly been stellar for Barcelona because their players are all declining. If you spend a ton of money keeping Messi and can't strengthen elsewhere they'll simply continue to fall behind.
That's because others around Messi are not pulling their weight. That's got nothing to do with what he is worth or should be due. Messi is as productive as he usually is - the contract isn't based on a name, but rather, merit.
Say they got in someone like Mbappe, who I know is currently at PSG but it's a loan so there is still a chance they could snatch him; then Mbappe, Suarez and Dembele would be a fantastic front three next season.
Yeah Mbappe would cost a lot more than the 80 million Messi wants, but he's also a hell of a lot younger and has an actual sell on value.
?But this is some kind of fantasy. There is no 'someone like' ; there is Mbappé, at the richest club in the world, and that's it. Mbappé, as good as he has looked, is more of a gamble, for the outlay, than giving Messi the new contract.

On one hand, you have these names and the risk inolved, on the other, you have a surething and bona fide all-time great who is settled, delivering and very likely to retire from his NT and maintain his health exclusively for his club within the duration of this new contract. The avenue you go down should be an absolute no-brainer.
Plus the idea of the board getting into trouble if they let Messi go isn't neccesarily a good one. The main thing that should matter is the state of the club, and when your star player is kicking up a fuss deciding he's worth 80 million just to stay then it's time to go.
Messi isn't kicking up a fuss. He doesn't have to as his catalogue of performance and what he has done, and continues to do, for Barcelona speaks louder than anything he could say.

He's still the most sought after player, for any club who can afford him, which is a company of 2 in Europe, both he and the club know he can get more money at either of those sides.
Let everyone know that Messis demands are absurd, and that you'll be letting him to because he's not bigger than the club.
Until Barcelona re-establish themselves as a club not dependent on Messi, yes, he is bigger than them. Once you get a player, or players in who are the next to carry the torch ala Messi taking it from Ronaldinho, Messi has all the leverage, not that he needs to strong arm Barcelona in any way. I'm sure they know his worth and are eager to get him signed up for a myriad of reasons that take both on and off the field considerations into account.
 
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Fortitude

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Yeah true. Mbappe was just off the top of my head in fairness. I'm sure Barca could think of somebody to buy though.
I'm not even sure if letting Messi go would be the right thing, but handing 80 million over to him would make me sick if I were a Barca fan.
Imagine if a prime Rooney had asked for a 30/40 million sign on fee? The Caf would be in proper meltdown.
There is an absolute gulf between Messi and Rooney in any shape or form, especially so as talismanns. You should question whether the caf would be in uproar if it were a Ronaldo, Best, Charlton, Robson or Cantona (in terms of icon). Basically take whoever it is you think has been United's best ever player and replace him with Rooney in your sentence for a sense of truer perspective.
 

Infordin

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People really underestimate just how often he saved us last season.

Let him have the paycheck he wants, at least with Neymar is gone who's performances did not justify the salary he wanted.
 

Sunspear17

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Once Ronaldo and Messi retire, their presence will be felt for sure. Real and Barca been so fortunate to have had the two best players of arguably all time at their disposal. They have both been worth their weight in gold.
 

Cal?

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All those people advocating they should sell him, doesn't his contract end in 8-9 months? meaning he can sign a contract with another club in 2 months?
 

kafta

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I don't understand how their wage bill is so high. Who are their top earners besides messi and suarez?