Barcelona Need To Cut £171 Million From Wage Bill By The End Of Today

Barcelona have until the end of today to free up £171 million from the wage bill or risk going bankrupt.

The Blaugrana are in a dire financial situation and recently announced losses of up to £88 million following the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

A 70 per cent cut with players was eventually negotiated in March but with income recently dropping to £746 million and salaries becoming 80 per cent of total income, Mundo Deportivo say Barcelona must agree new cuts to reduce a ridiculous wage bill.

The deadline is Thursday but it's said the club are holding crucial talks with the squad and the management team on Wednesday and hope to find a solution by close of play.

Image: PA

The solution Barca are leaning towards in a bid to get out of this financial mess is for the salaries to remain the same but be paid in smaller installments over a longer period.

However, only Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Frenkie De Jong, Clement Lenglet and Gerard Pique are in favour of this arrangement at the moment.

Image: PA

The alternative, seen as a final option, is for the playing squad to be named as club ambassadors and receive their money following retirement.

There may be some reluctance to see this happen though given the unpredictable nature of the world at the moment.

If there is no agreement at all, then salaries will be reduced unilaterally by the board - which may well then lead to players being released from their contracts if the AFE (Association of Spanish Footballers) get involved.

A statement already released from them reads: "The club cannot fail to be aware that this process, if carried out in the terms set forth, will entail a more than secure challenge to the measures that are finally adopted, with a high risk of nullity, and the automatic right to indemnified termination of the employment contract of the affected workers, by virtue of the application of article 41 ET itself.

"We believe that the club must be frank with its members and assume before them that these measures will lead to a very significant loss of FC Barcelona's assets."

Club captain and all-time leading goalscorer Lionel Messi is Barca's highest earner on a huge £26 million-a-year contract, with Antoine Griezmann next up on around £15 million per annum.

Topics: Football News, FC Barcelona, Football, Lionel Messi, La Liga

Josh Lawless

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