Barcelona set for pay cut talks with highest-earning duo after agreement with captains reached

Barcelona’s efforts at cutting down their massive wage bill continue as they look to get things under some control amidst the financial turmoil the club find themselves in.

Things had gotten so out of hand that the Catalans were unable to register their new signings, despite not having renewed Lionel Messi’s contract. This led to one of the club captains, Gerard Pique, to step up and agree to a substantial wage reduction in order to facilitate the registration of the new arrivals.

In the aftermath, the other three Barcelona captains, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Sergi Roberto, have also agreed to take salary cuts, with an agreement with each of them almost done.

Now, as reported by Ara, Barcelona will shift their focus towards negotiations with the club’s two highest earners, Antoine Griezmann and Philippe Coutinho over potential wage cuts for the duo.

Griezmann, who has been with Barca for two years, was linked with an exit all summer long as a way to accommodate Messi’s stay. However, with the 34-year-old having departed, the Frenchman looks set to stay at Camp Nou.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup winner made his 100th appearance for Barca this past weekend against Real Sociedad and reaffirmed his desire to stay at Camp Nou and achieve more landmarks.

As for Coutinho, he, too, has been linked with an exit throughout the summer, but him being injured during pre-season complicated matters a tad bit. Furthermore, SPORT reports that given his high wages, there are not many takers for him this summer.

Given how things have developed, it seems like the 29-year-old Brazilian playmaker will be staying put at Camp Nou this term. However, he will have to take a pay cut as well, with Barca now planning to open talks with his camp as well as Griezmann’s.