Paris St-Germain are convinced that signing Lionel Messi would pay off in the long run and could sign him within a week, according to the PA news agency.
Barcelona announced Thursday night that the Argentina striker will be leaving the Catalan club, with financial restrictions preventing him from offering him a new contract.
PSG were initially of the opinion that a deal could not be reached, but sources familiar with the matter claim that a direct approach from Messi to PSG head coach Mauricio Pochettino has changed the dynamics.
Overnight, the French club undertook a business analysis and determined that signing Messi would work within financial fair play rules.
The personal bond between Messi and compatriot Pochettino and the fact that the deal is a free transfer are factors in PSG’s pursuit of the deal. They believe Messi’s signing would increase their trading income in Europe and South America if he teamed up with Neymar.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta said on Friday that the only way available to keep Messi would have put the club in danger “for the next 50 years”.
Speaking at a press conference, he said: “The club have over 100 years of history and are above any player, even the best in history, to whom we will be eternally grateful. Above the players, managers and presidents, Barça will always be above them.
Laporta said the club and Messi both wanted to sign a new contract. “I said we would do everything possible to keep Messi at Barca in the club’s economic situation,” he said.
“We came to an agreement but could not formalize it, due to the economic situation of the club, which means that we cannot register the player due to the salary limits. I do not want to dwell indefinitely on the situation we have inherited and the terrible decisions that have been made in the past. We have gone from bad to worse. “
Laporta has said he does not want to generate false hopes when asked if Messi can still stay at Barcelona, who have a total debt of over € 1 billion.
La Liga have a salary cap, calculated based on a club’s financial health, which was reduced in November following financial pressures caused by the pandemic, and Barcelona have been hit hard.
Laporta said the club signed two new contracts with Messi, first a two-year contract payable over five years and then a five-year contract. But he said they were unable to strike either deal due to La Liga FFP rules and he was unwilling to accept the private equity investment offered. by the CVC league only to secure Messi’s future.
“To meet FFP, Barca had to agree to an operation, essentially remortgage the club, which would affect us for the next 50 years in terms of TV rights, and I had to make the decision,” he said. “We cannot put the institution at greater risk.”
Despite opposition from Barcelona and Real Madrid, the majority of clubs in the league are expected to give their final approval to the CVC deal at an upcoming general assembly.
Laporta said the financial losses for the 2020-21 season impacted by the coronavirus would be double what was expected. “We have to move on. We won’t just try to meet the FFP criteria by putting the club at risk for the next 50 years.
Laporta, who asked him if he was aware of PSG’s interest, said: “Everything he does is up to him – you’ll have to ask him. I won’t answer that. I don’t know. , but we always say that they [PSG]have options.
