Leaked: Lionel Messi's eye-watering demands to stay at cash-strapped Barcelona in 2020 will stun you

The departure of Lionel Messi from Barcelona was undoubtedly one of the most talked-about topics during the summer transfer window of 2021. The Argentine icon achieved career-highs at the Catalan club and became one of football's greatest ever stars. After racking up seven Ballon d'Or awards and two trebles with the La Liga giants, the iconic striker eventually departed the club following their financial struggles post the COVID-19 pandemic and joined Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) last year.

Even as speculation of Messi's possible return to Barcelona continues to hog the headlines, latest reports have now revealed that the Argentine talisman reportedly wanted the Catalan club to satisfy several demands to sign an extended deal with the team in 2020. The iconic striker's eye-watering demands to stay at the Spanish side two years ago have been revealed in a significant leak. One may note the superstar left the La Liga giants after 21 years at the club, joining PSG on a free transfer when his contract expired.

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According to El Mundo, Messi eventually left Barcelona because the cash-strapped Spanish giants could not satisfy several contractual demands in 2020 and gave the Argentine icon enough reason to force his way out of the club before eventually moving to Paris a season later. The details were recovered via emails between Josep Bartomeu, then-president of Barcelona, and Lionel Messi's father and representative, Jorge Messi, the 35-year-legal old's team, and Barcelona officials.

According to the revelations, Messi's stipulations to stay at Barcelona reportedly included a massive signing-on bonus of 8.7 million pounds and a private jet to fly his family back to Argentina at Christmas. The veteran striker reportedly requested a luxury executive box at Camp Nou for his family and the family of former Barca teammate Luis Suarez.

The Argentine legend, who was 33 years old back then, is said to have asked for a three-year deal until 2023, plus an option to extend. Other demands reportedly made by Messi in June 2020 included lowering his buyout clause from 610 million pounds to a nominal fee of just 8,700 pounds - almost negligible given the money in today's market.

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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Messi accepted a 20 per cent pay cut in 2020-21. However, he reportedly asked for his net salary of 65 million pounds a year to be raised to 71.5 million pounds a year for the next two seasons, plus three per cent in annual interest. Should the Spanish government have raised taxes, the legendary striker reportedly wanted to be protected from any added personal costs. He is said to have requested the Catalan giants to cover the difference through his wages to ensure he keeps the same net salary.

The role of Messi's PA, Pepe Costa, was reportedly in jeopardy because of the financial difficulties caused by the pandemic. Costa was to stay at the club under the Argentine's demands. The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner reportedly wanted his brother Rodrigo to receive a commission as part of his renewal bonus. Rodrigo was representing Ansu Fati at the time.

The report from El Mundo stated that Barcelona complied with all of Messi's demands, except for two: refusing to reduce his release clause to 8,700 pounds and requiring the club to earn back its pre-pandemic income to receive the 8.7 million pounds signing-on bonus, which was and remains improbable given their well-publicized financial difficulties. Due to this, the Argentine superstar quit negotiations, culminating in the infamous 'Burofax' sent to the club to inform them of his desire to leave and join PSG.

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