Barcelona hit setback in bid to free up cash for Lionel Messi return as stars reject wage reduction

Barcelona‘s first moves to reduce their wage bill to comply with LaLiga‘s Fair Play rules have been unsuccessful with both Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen saying no to a salary decrease.

The Catalan giants must lower their wage bill by a reported £180m if they are to make any significant moves this summer.

And moves don’t come much bigger than a potential homecoming for Lionel Messi,  with the club keen on brining the the Argentinian back to Spain.

Messi’s contract at PSG is due to expire in June but Barcelona must overcome their crippling financial issues to get a deal over the line.

And they are making slow progress on that front with Sport reporting that their proposal of a wage reduction to Kessie and Christensen was not received well.

Franck Kessie (left) and Andreas Christensen have rejected the proposal of a wage reduction 

The Spanish outlet claim the midfielder and defender pointed to their commitment club since joining on free transfers last summer, having both turned down new deals and offers from other teams at the time.

They feel that a change in terms less than a year into their contracts is unwarranted and that Barcelona must look for alternative solutions.

Barcelona are expected to hold further talks with Messi’s representatives in the coming weeks to try to resolve any issues and reach an agreement.

Barcelona have been keen to orchestrate a return to Spain for club legend Lionel Messi

Their pursuit could be helped by PSG’s stance on Messi’s future, with the French giants said to be ready to let Messi leave the club when his contract ends.

Club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi is understood to have made the decision to focus on building a more financially stable project that focuses on promoting young French talent rather than relying on a few star names.