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A Look Back On Lionel Messi's Eight Barcelona Contracts

A Look Back On Lionel Messi's Eight Barcelona Contracts

It's been an incredible 12 years in Catalonia for the Argentine

Joe Baiamonte

Joe Baiamonte

Whenever Lionel Messi puts pen to paper on a new contract at Barcelona, it's headline news around the world. The five time Ballon d'Or winning phenom has had a monumental, Hollywood worthy journey since he first placed his signature on a napkin for Barca's technical director Charly Rexach in December 2000.

Back then, there were no guarantees the 13-year-old Messi would ever pull on the 'Blaugrana' shirt, with Barca refusing to commit to an agreement since the Argentine teenager arrived three months beforehand. Rexach knew Barca had to sign Messi but this was a Barcelona in crisis, having just lost Luis Figo to Real Madrid, who were also now eyeing up a deal to pry Messi away from Catalonia, too.

Barca had agreed to footing both a £40,000 annual salary for Messi's father Jorge and £1,000 a month for hormone growth treatment, which the diminutive Argentine prodigy would inject into his legs. Such costs were considered a gamble by many, but Rexach seemed to know he was onto a sure thing, so penned an impromptu contract on a napkin at the Pompeia tennis club, which read "I, Charly Rexach, in my capacity as technical secretary for FC Barcelona, and despite the existence of some opinions against it, commit to signing Lionel Messi as long as the conditions agreed are met."

Four years later and Messi had signed his first professional contract with the club, nine months prior to his first team debut. In 2005, the future four time Champions League winning forward would sign an improved deal, complete with an eye watering €150 million release clause.

Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi

Image credit: PA Images

As Messi's reputation began to grow, so did his earning power, with the Barcelona hierarchy awarding him another new contract in September of 2005, only three months after his previous one. In March 2007, this contract was improved to a £100,000-a-week deal.

Seventeen months later, the departing Ronaldinho's number 10 shirt wasn't the only thing Messi was rewarded with, as yet another new deal was sent his way to sign, making him the club's highest paid player. After leading Pep Guardiola's team to a historic treble the following season, culminating in a 2-0 defeat of Manchester United in the Champions League final in Rome, Messi attached his signature to a seven year deal, with his release clause now standing at a staggering €250m.

Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi

Messi seals the 2009 Champions League for Barcelona (Image credit: PA Images)

Following this flurry of new deals, Messi wouldn't sign a new contract until February 2013, hot on the heels of scoring a record breaking 91 goals in a calendar year, committing his future to the Camp Nou club until at least 2018. This deal would be 'improved' although not extended, just before the 2014 World Cup, as rumours circulated regarding his future at Barcelona. The deal currently sees Messi pocket a reported £336,000-per-week. That's £2,000 an hour or £33 a minute. Not bad work, if you can get it.

Now, amid more reports linking him away from La Liga, this time to tonight's Champions League opponents Manchester City (managed by perhaps the most influential manager in Messi's career, Pep Guardiola) and with his tax evasion controversies sullying his name, Barcelona chiefs are clamouring to attach their greatest ever player to a new deal that will see him remain at Camp Nou for the remainder of his career. However, with Messi claiming that he wouldn't mind one last hurrah with boyhood club Newell's Old Boys, in Argentina, maybe Barca's number 10 is done putting pen to paper for them.

(H/T ESPN)

Featured Image Credit:

Topics: Football, Barcelona, Lionel Messi