Lionel Messi had shockingly left Barcelona two years back. Barcelona club officials, quite unsurprisingly, had to face severe criticism for not being able to keep Messi in the team. It is now being reported that Messi had made nine demands to Barcelona team management back in 2020. The club officials had eventually failed to fulfil all the demands and it resulted in the Argentine’s departure in 2021.
A report published by El Mundo claims that Messi had categorised the nine demands as important but then Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu rejected two of those.
Messi’s primary demand was to secure a long-term deal and extend his contract for three more years. Moreover, he had asked for a €10 million renewal bonus. But Barcelona had to reject this demand.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner also wanted his release clause of €700 million to be reduced to €10,000. It was believed that a move like this would enable him to find a new club whenever he wanted. Although, the officials of the Spanish giants eventually could not agree to this.
Barcelona footballers had taken a pay cut to help their team in dealing with the financial difficulties during the Covid-19 pandemic. But it is being understood that Messi wanted his wages to be reimbursed with a three per cent interest fee.
Messi had also asked the club officials to keep his net salary same. Moreover, he wanted a private box for his and then teammate Luis Suarez’s family at the Nou Camp.
The report claimed Messi wanted to obtain a private jet from the club so that he could easily travel back to Argentina during the winter break.
Barcelona had employed a personal assistant for Messi. The team management wanted to abolish the position during the pandemic. Messi was averse to this idea. The 35-year-old had asked the club officials not to terminate the personal assistant’s contract.
Messi, in his last demand, wanted his brother Rodrigo Messi to earn a commission as part of his renewal bonus.
Messi had eventually joined French football club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) ahead of the 2021-22 season. He has so far played 45 matches for PSG and scored 17 goals. In the new Ligue 1 season, Messi has played eight matches. He has already scored four goals and registered seven assists.
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