Barça is doing badly, we know that. It is for this reason that the Catalan club had to resolve to see Lionel Messi leave for Paris Saint-Germain. But the figures put forward by President Joan Laporta at a press conference on Monday are beyond worrying. According to him, the club’s debt stood at 1.350 billion euros on March 21. That says a lot about the size of the chasm.
“We lost 481 million euros this year. We spent 1,136 million euros for 655 in income. The impact of the Covid is 91 million euros. Our payroll represents 103% of interest. These are 617 million euros, 25 to 30% more than our rivals. The financial situation is dramatic, ”said the boss of the Blaugranas, who replaced at the end of 2020 the former president Josep Maria Bartomeu, set up as a horseman of the Catalan apocalypse by his successor. The post-departure management of Neymar at PSG is in particular questioned.
The Messi case, “sad but necessary”
“Since being sold for 222 million euros, the money has been spent disproportionately and at tremendous speed. Salaries have exploded. And now we are there. The proof, even sportingly it did not work. […] The case of Messi is sad but necessary because the institution is above everything, ”concluded Laporta, who nevertheless took advantage of the players who, like Pique, agreed to lower their salaries.