Barcelona want defender to take a 60% pay cut and defer his salary by two years – Romero

With the La Liga title sealed, Barcelona are focusing on resolving their Financial Fair Play issues ahead of the summer transfer window. Player sales and salary cuts will be necessary in order to achieve the margin required to register new players before next season.

And, according to Gerard Romero, Barcelona president Joan Laporta and his brother-in-law Alejandro Echevarria met with veteran defender Jordi Alba last evening to discuss his prospects ahead of the next season.

Alba’s current contract with Barça expires at the end of the next season, in 2024. But due to past deferred wage payments and the incremental nature of his contract, the Spaniard will be owed a massive €38 million in wages for 2023/24.

Given that the Blaugrana are in no position to pay that, they are said to be considering mutually terminating his contract or reaching an agreement with the 34-year-old over a pay reduction.

Now, as per Romero, Laporta and Alba met on Tuesday evening and discussed the possibilities for the veteran left-back.

It is claimed that the Barça president told Alba that he must take a 60% pay cut and agree to defer his salary by two more years if he wishes to continue at the club beyond the ongoing campaign. It would mean that the Blaugrana would be paying the defender after his contract expires in 2024.

The report from Romero stated that the Spanish international has not given an answer as of yet.

However, a different report from Helena Condis claimed that Alba reiterated his desire to fulfil his contract at Barcelona to Laporta and insisted that he would be willing to help the club.

The 34-year-old has lost his spot in the starting XI to Alejandro Balde, who is close to signing a new contract. So, Alba’s game-time will be severely limited next season, but he seems to be willing to accept that and stay at the club for one more year.

As for the salary reduction, it remains to be seen if Barcelona indeed have asked to cut his wages by 60% and if so, whether he agrees to those conditions.