Former Barcelona president, Josep Maria Bartomeu has reportedly talked about one of the most dramatic incidents that occurred during his tenure at the club, describing how Lionel Messi was on the verge of being the focus of an incredible transfer deal.
In an interview with Cadena SER, Bartomeu discussed the time after Neymar’s departure, when Barcelona were already going through significant changes.
Barcelona Received Huge Offer For Messi
During this period, the club started to worry about a possible record-breaking move to sell Messi.
Bartomeu explained how the rumours first surfaced. “A few weeks after Neymar’s departure, rumours began to circulate that a club was preparing €400 million for Messi – the amount of his release clause.”
He continued by disclosing information on how dire the situation seemed at the time.
“Funds from an Arab country were transferred to accounts in Europe.”
When questioned about the source of those funding, Bartomeu declined to provide specifics but alluded to the extent of financial influence at play.
“It doesn’t matter now… that’s old news; it was years ago. There are very few clubs in England, or state-owned clubs, that can afford such sums.”
See Also: FPL GW35 Recap: Three More To Go; iSoccer Winners
He also made it clear that while a club was ready to trigger the clause, it was not one of the most commonly linked names.
“There was a team willing to pay €400 million. I don’t want to name names, but it wasn’t [Manchester] City.”
Barcelona moved swiftly to protect their most valuable asset in the face of that threat. The internal reaction and the conversations that followed with Messi and his family were described by Bartomeu.
“What we did was talk to Lionel Messi and his father and discuss the matter: we had to raise the release clause.”
“At the time, the clause was 400, so we raised it to 700, which is a very high figure.
“If you raise the release clause, you also have to raise the player’s salary and compensation.”
