Barcelona presidential candidate Emily Rosoud confirmed today, Tuesday, that captain Lionel Messi's salary is too large for the club to bear in light of the current financial crisis, while the other candidate, Juan Laporta, promoted his election campaign with a huge provocative banner next to the stronghold of his rival Real Madrid.
Rossoud, the former Barcelona vice-president, who resigned this year in protest at the club's management led by Josep Maria Bartomeu, said that Messi's salary should be reduced, noting that the Argentine star would accept a lower salary if he is convinced of the possibility of the club returning to win titles.
The end of the contract of Messi, who sought to leave Barcelona during the summer transfer period, remains with the club in which he spent his entire career less than 7 months, and he will be free to negotiate with other clubs next month.
"In the current situation the club cannot afford Messi’s salary, so we must reach an agreement with him. We will present him with an attractive project," Rosoud told the Spanish newspaper AS.
The presidential candidate for the Catalan club said, "The most important thing in the current situation is the sports project. When Messi said he would leave, he did not mention that the money was the reason for that. His highest salary in the world does not make any player more than him, he does not want to leave because he is paid a little."
"He wants to leave because he is trying to win titles. He referred to that recently when he said, 'The Champions League is not within our reach. He wants a team full of talent.'"
French newspaper L'Equipe said that Messi is the highest-paid player in the world this year, as he gets about 8.2 million euros (9.97 million dollars) a month from Barcelona.
Rossoud, one of many candidates for the club's presidency elections scheduled for January 24, added that he hoped Messi would be named to the renovated Camp Nou stadium, a move he believes will attract sponsors to the club.
“I look forward to seeing you again.”
Juan Laporta promoted his campaign as the next president of Barcelona in the capital, Madrid, in a different way, by placing a large banner with his picture just a few meters from the stadium of the traditional rivals Real Madrid, “Santiago Bernabeu”.
# HolaMadrid😎 pic.twitter.com/eSmCkVWyeb
- Joan Laporta Estruch🎗 (@JoanLaportaFCB) December 15, 2020
The bold poster refers to Laporta's impressive reign as president of Barcelona that came at the expense of his traditional rival, and the poster bore the slogan "I look forward to seeing you again."
Laporta posted on his personal page on Twitter today, Tuesday, two photos of him from his electoral campaign by placing a huge banner of him as a mural on a building in the Spanish capital.
Spanish press reports said that Laporta placed a huge banner bearing his electoral slogan, 50 meters high, on a 13-storey building, about 100 meters from the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.
Tweeters interacted with the photos published by Laporta near the stronghold of Real Madrid, where they saw that his daring in choosing the place to market his election campaign will affect the results of the elections headed by Barcelona, and it may be one of the most important reasons for his victory.
Laporta presided over Barcelona between 2003-2010, revolutionizing the club and achieving the historic six-party team during his reign, and through his candidacy in the next elections, he seeks to win a new presidential term to restore the club's glories.