La Liga president Javier Tebas stressed on Thursday that Barcelona must drastically reduce its players' wage bill to keep captain Lionel Messi, adding that the club will not show any leniency when it comes to complying with the league's strict financial control rules.
Messi - the historical scorer and record holder in the number of matches with the team - ended his 21-year association with the Catalan club last June, and is now available for free, because Barcelona cannot offer him a new offer due to his financial suffering.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta said last June that Messi is keen to stay at the club, but that a new offer for him is hampered by the rules of financial fair play in the league.
Spanish media reported that La Liga could be lenient in its rules to allow the six-times Ballon d'Or winner to stay at Barcelona, but Tebas said there was no chance of that happening.
"The rules are the same and everyone must abide by them, from Barcelona to Alcorcon (the second division competitor)," he told the Spanish television network La Sexta.
The 34-year-old helped lead Argentina to the Copa America final against Brazil on Saturday, hoping to win his first major title with his country.
The team, led by coach Lionel Scaloni, has not lost in 19 matches since the last Copa America in 2019.
The big players - such as Sergio Aguero and Angel Di Maria - realize that winning the World Cup next year 2022 is an unlikely scenario, and that the final on Saturday may be their last chance to win the title.
But Messi's future with the club still needs to be stabilized, as the Spanish League begins in 5 weeks.
Tebas said that the only way for Barcelona to retain its leader is to get rid of some of its players, and has already sold Junior Firpo to Leeds United and American international Conrad de la Fuente to Olympique Marseille.
"If no player leaves, it will be impossible to keep Messi," Tebas added.