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The former president of “Barcelona” told a new behind-the-scenes story about the failed attempt to kidnap a flea with a record amount.
President Josep Bartomeu revealed BarcelonaPreviously, he thwarted the attempt of one of the clubs to include the Argentine Lionel Messi From “Barcelona” with a record deal of 400 million euros during his presidency.
Messi left Barcelona in the summer of 2021 and moved to Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer at the end of his contract to play for two years before joining Inter Miami, his current team.
However, before this date, the European giant club tried to kidnap Messi by paying the €400 million release clause in his contract.
Speaking to Spanish radio station Cadena Ser, Bartomeu recalled the 2017 club going through a period of great change following Neymar da Silva’s departure from PSG, noting that concerns about a record-breaking bid for Messi had been raised in Barcelona.
Bartomeu said: “A few weeks after Neymar’s departure, rumors began to circulate that the club was going to pay 400 million euros for Messi, which is the value of the release clause in his contract.”
He then revealed how serious the situation was at the time, saying: “Money was transferred from an Arab country to European accounts.”
When asked about the source of this money, Bartomeu refrained from giving specific details, but he hinted at the large financial force behind the move, adding: “It doesn’t matter anymore…
Bartomeu also confirmed that the club are not among the names that have been touted as being willing to activate the release clause, as he said: “There was a team that was ready to pay 400 million euros. I don’t want to name names, but it wasn’t Manchester City.”
In the face of this threat, Barcelona moved quickly to retain their first star, as Bartomeu explained: “We did the talking and the question with Lionel Messi and his father and we had to raise the release point value.”
This decision eventually led to a major change in the contract, as he concluded, “At that time the condition was 400 million, so we increased it to 700 million, which is a very high number.”
The former president of “Barcelona” concluded his statements in this regard, saying: “When you raise the release point value, you also have to raise the player’s wages and compensation.”
