'Would have been possible to renew Lionel Messi's contract' - Ex-Barcelona president reveals who was to blame for departure of Argentine GOAT

Barca had hoped that the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner would agree to play for free at one stage, as they sought to get collective finances in order, but there was no deal to be done. Career-long ties with the Blaugrana were severed, with a once joyous professional relationship becoming strained.

Only fleeting visits to Barcelona have been paid since then, with Messi recently getting a secret look at the renovation work that has been carried out at Camp Nou. He has not graced that venue since heading to France, despite various calls for an emotional return to be agreed - either as a returning hero or in an exhibition game.

Joan Laporta has been unable to put any such occasion in place, while admitting that he has lost contact with Messi down the years. The current supremo at Camp Nou has suggested that Bartomeu and the previous presidential regime at Barca are responsible for Messi moving on, as they oversaw an era of financial ruin.

Bartomeu has refuted those claims, saying of the Laporta-led regime: “If they had done what needed to be done, it would have been perfectly possible to renew Leo Messi’s contract and sign players.”

He went on to say: “It wasn’t the legacy’s fault, but rather financial fair play, because the new board inflated the losses to €555 million. When La Liga received this, it decided to carry out a second audit and concluded that the losses were not as stated, as there were provisions amounting to €283 million. But Barca decided to stand by its proposal, La Liga applied the rules, and the club lost a financial fair play penalty which, to this day, it has still not recovered.”

Bartomeu added on Messi being treated unfairly as he was ushered towards the exits, with his record-setting exploits for Barcelona set to stand the test of time: “Messi was underpaid for what he delivered, both in sporting, financial and commercial terms. He would have loved to be part of the squad’s renewal, alongside these young players we have now, who are also part of this famous legacy, but he was let go, and it couldn’t be.”

Bartomeu was the man to block Messi from leaving during the infamous ‘burofax episode’ of 2020, during which the Argentine superstar expressed a desire to leave Barcelona. He was ultimately prevented from doing so, but the Covid-19 pandemic made life increasingly difficult for clubs around the world.

On the challenges that he faced when trying to keep a star-studded squad intact, Bartomeu said: “In March 2020, lockdown began and at that point, revenue dried up, so a 14% pay cut was agreed with the players, resulting in savings of €90 million.

“We spoke to Procicat and they told us we would surely be able to reopen the stadium for the new season, but in August, they told us we couldn’t. So we spoke to the players to tell them their wages would be cut by 20%. And that’s when things came to a head, because they said no.

“Consequently, we had to open negotiations. And there were only four players who said, ‘We want to do this, we want to help’. A new contract was drawn up for them, under which they would earn less in the first two years and more in the final two.”

Barca were ultimately unable to stop Messi from walking away, with the South American GOAT leaving with 672 goals and 34 trophies to his name. At 38 years of age, he is now on the books of MLS Cup winners Inter Miami and has become the undoubted MVP of football in the United States.