MANCHESTER UNITED are one of a handful of clubs along with rivals Manchester City that can afford Lionel Messi’s staggering wages.
The Barcelona star has been linked with a sensational move away from the Nou Camp, with a clause in his contract allowing him to leave for free in the summer.
Barcelona star Lionel Messi earns an incredible £83.2million-a-year at the Nou Camp
It has been claimed that the Citizens will be in pole position to land the Argentinian international, and they have pockets deep enough to be able to sign him.
Rivals United are also in for the six-time Ballon d’Or winner, along with Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan.
But it isn’t believed that the Old Lady will be able to afford Messi, though interestingly, Barca’s rivals Real Madrid can.
Details of Messi’s mind-boggling wages were revealed by Football Leaks in 2018, where they stated that the forward’s basic wages per year is over £60.2million, with his yearly wage packet coming in at £83.2m.
His basic wages per week totals at £1.15million, with the player also paid £175,000-a-week in image rights.
NO MESSING ABOUT
Incredibly, Messi also pockets £250,000-a-week in bonuses, with his total wage packet per week coming in at a whopping £1.6million.
In Deloitte’s recent Football Money League findings, the revenue for European sides from the 2018/19 season were published.
And it is understood that the the top six sides are the only ones able to afford Messi.
Unsurprisingly, Barca sit top of the pile after earning £741million in revenue, followed by Los Blancos with £667m, though it is highly unlikely that Messi will ever don the famous white jersey.
United came in third place after racking up £627m, with Bayern next up after pocketing £581m, with PSG completing the top five with £560m.
City come in sixth after earning £538m, though the fact they are managed by Pep Guardiola could tempt Messi into joining.
The speculation that Messi could leave Barca stems from his recent public fall-out with club sporting director Eric Abidal, as he reacted angrily to comments made from his former team-mate.
Spanish left-back Jordi Alba has backed Messi in his row with Abidal, while Gerard Pique had urged his colleagues to unite.
Man City hope to sign Lionel Messi on FREE transfer if superstar does not resolve Barcelona bust-up
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
