INTERIM Barcelona president Carlos Tusquets has maintained his view that the club would be ‘better off’ without Lionel Messi.
A row has been sparked at the Camp Nou after the chief claimed that he would have considered selling the Argentine during his contract dispute in the summer.
Lionel Messi attempted to leave the Camp Nou in the summer but his move was blockedCredit: EPA
Carlos Tusquets believes Barcelona should have let their talisman leaveCredit: Getty Images – Getty
A number of figures, including coach Ronald Koeman, slammed Tusquets for suggesting the Catalans could make do without Messi.
But he has once again asserted that, financially-speaking, a sale was the best option.
He told Catalunya Radio: “I didn’t say that I would have sold Messi.
“I said that, financially, him leaving would have been good for the club.
“We would be better off because we said that his salary is the highest in the world.
“Nothing could be truer. But I’m nobody, the decision is his and the interim board cannot take these decisions.
“If it’s necessary, I’ll tell Koeman that he has misunderstood what I said. I was just doing the maths.
“What Messi generates for the club makes up for the cost [of his salary], but Barcelona aren’t dependant on just one person.”
Tusquets is in temporary charge of the LaLiga giants ahead of the club’s presidential election on January 24.
Frontrunner Joan Laporta, who ran Barcelona from 2003 to 2010, has promised ‘imaginative proposals’ to secure Messi’s future.
The striker is paid a mega £900,000-a-week to make him the world’s top-earning footballer.
Having recently sealed a second round of squad pay cuts, the Blaugrana are dealing with a financial crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic and a mammoth wage bill.
Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are among the teams keeping an eye on the 33-year-old ahead of his contract expiring in June.
Tusquets is not running for the full-time presidency and set alarm bells ringing when going off-piste with his comments earlier in the month.
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The 69-year-old had declared: “From an economic point of view, I would have sold Messi in the summer.
“It would have been desirable for the money we would have received, and for what we would have saved.”
The remarks upset coach Koeman, who is determined to prove to Messi that he can lead Barcelona to trophies this season.
The Dutchman said: “If there’s anyone who needs to decide about his future, it’s Leo himself.
Leo’s got a year left on his deal and he is the one who needs to decide.
Ronald Koeman
“I don’t care what’s said outside the club, however comments from inside the club don’t help us have the calmness we need to do our job.
“We can’t control what’s said outside, but from within it’s a different story.
“It might have been his personal opinion and I respect that.
“But Leo’s got a year left on his deal and he is the one who needs to decide.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
