Lionel Messi will have to take a 75% cut from his last Barcelona wage to facilitate a move back to Camp Nou.
The 2022 World Cup winner is heading for an acrimonious end to his stint at Paris Saint-Germain as the suspended player will not renew his contract with the Ligue 1 outfit.
Barcelona have made no secret about their desire to re-sign Messi but their financial situation is a major stumbling block.
According to Sport, the Catalan club is drawing up a contract for two years worth a quarter of his last salary at the club, which was around €100m gross in the 2020-21 season.
Moreover, the deal will also have a clause which would allow Messi to leave after one season with a €25m gross salary.
According to Mundo Deportivo, the 35-year-old has been offered a mammoth $300 million (€271.37m) per year to play in Saudi Pro League by Al Hilal, which is more than 10 times what the Catalan outfit is offering him.
Moreover, Inter Miami owner, David Beckham recently met with Messi in Paris to convince the player to shift base to the United States.
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Barcelona’s financial constraints are a major hurdle in completing the deal and their pursuit is not making much progress.
The club must cut down on their salary budget by €200m (£176m/$220m) and bring in another €100m (£76m/$120m) in transfer fees to comply with the Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations of La Liga and signing Messi would further complicate that process.
