Barcelona are still unable to secure Lionel Messi’s future with a new deal, because of LaLiga’s refusal to make any concession, the UK Mirror reports.
After being found guilty of operating significantly over the league’s wage rulings, Barca were punished.
This means they were not allowed to register new signings, except they cut down their wage bill.
Messi’s previous contract expired at the end of June, but he is ready to extend his 21-year stay.
However, LaLiga slapped Barca with the wage-related punishment in the period between the expiration of Messi’s previous contract and before he had the chance to sign a new one.
As a result, just like the new signings, Messi has been unable to be registered as a Barca player, with the new Spanish season now under two weeks away.
Barcelona president, Joan Laporta, has pleaded with LaLiga officials, claiming: “We want more flexibility from the league to be able to include more signings.
“The negotiations with Messi are well underway, but we are fixing several issues on both sides.”
If recent reports are to be believed, Barcelona could have yet another issue to deal with, as La Liga are rumoured to be investigating whether the money they have cleared from their wage bill thus far has been done in a fair and legitimate manner.