Many were shocked yesterday when Barcelona announced that Lionel Messi was leaving yet the writing was on the wall and I was wondering what was taking so long. Obviously the club was hoping for a miracle form La Liga and that was never going to be the case.
I wrote a post about Barcelona and the financial implications they now find themselves in last month so Messi leaving is the right call and only call they have. Have a look at the current salaries they pay out yearly and weekly and let those numbers sink in first before I let you know what they are allowed to spend.
La Liga controls the Spanish League including approving what players the clubs are buying and selling. Remember last season when Messi wanted to leave and La Liga refused as they were holding his contract. Messi was an important part of the La Liga business model as he attracted attention to the Spanish League worth Billions in television rights and advertising revenue.
Back in 2011/2012 Barcelona signed up to the Financial fair play agreement and have to abide by the rules. The club is reportedly in debt to the tune of 1 billion but reports suggest it is far worse than anyone could have imagined.
Doesn't matter how good he was if you cannot afford him then it is just tough as the club comes first.
Here are the telling figures and why they are in serious trouble.
The club last season spent €676 Million (10% Messi) and this year have €388 Million which is a reduction of €288 Million. Weekly it highlights how bad things really are as they are allowed €7.4 Million compared to the €33 Million they were spending. That is a loss of nearly €26 Million per week in salaries which will include coaches etc and not just players.
All players in the squad have been asked to reduce their salaries by 40-50% and even then it may be tight. This is not including Messi as halving his salary is like having 5 or 10 more players depending on their salaries. The truth is the club cannot afford him anymore and he has to leave.
Some thought it was a ploy to get the La Liga board to change their mind and maybe subsidise his salary but that would be highly unfair on the other teams in the League. They cannot back down as Barcelona has done this all on their own with very poor accounting and managing skills. They are doing the opposite of how to run a club and now must suffer the consequences. The club is in theory flat broke and are lucky to not be penalised points for this season or be kicked out the League and demoted.
How stupid are they as last season they could have at least sold Messi and now let him disappear on a free transfer because they cannot afford to renew his contract. Messi knew things were bad and why he was a little stunned to hear the club cannot afford to resign him even though he took a 50% cut in his salary. Doing the maths it doesn't take a genius to see they are nearly 5 x over their weekly budget and even a 40 or 50% cut on players salaries will still leave them more than 2x of where they have to be. Other players will have to leave as more cuts are required.
The club needs youngsters coming through their academy as they have no other choice as this is going to be a team of no stars by the time Barcelona restructures setting them back years. Don't expect to see Barcelona in the Champions League year after year as this is not going to happen.