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Barcelona midfielder Sergi Roberto has been offered a one-year contract extension on reduced wages, according to reports.
Roberto has been at the Camp Nou since he was 14 years old, though AS reports that his future is in doubt due to his current deal expiring this summer.
Club president Joan Laporta was critical of the 30-year-old during the international break in March. He claimed that Roberto had refused to extend the deal earlier in the campaign.
Laporta was quoted as saying by Mundo Deportivo:
"The renewal was offered at the time, I even intervened so that they were conditions in consensus with the two parties. And they did not want to sign it. We understand that since they did not want to sign and now the contract ends."
The Spaniard's contract situation was taken for granted at the beginning of the campaign. Barcelona's economic vice president Eduard Romeu said in September:
"We consider it closed."
It has been a difficult year for Roberto, who has only made 12 appearances all season due to injury. He was even booed by his own fans during their embarrassing 3-0 defeat by Bayern Munich in a group stage game at the Champions League last September.
Barcelona still desperate to reduce wage bill
Manager Xavi Hernandez has defended his former teammate Roberto in the press. But the club have made it clear that if the midfielder wants to continue to play for the Catalan giants, he must accept a vastly reduced wage.
Despite improved performances on the pitch in the second half of the current campaign, the Blaugrana are still in deep financial trouble. Forbes reported in March that the five-time European champions are around $1.5bn in debt.
This is mainly due to some disastrous signings in recent times, with flops such as Philippe Coutinho, Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele all costing north of €100 million each.
This has led to Barcelona being the only La Liga side with a squad spending limit that's less than zero. Marca reported that the club have a cap of - €144 million.
That means the Blaugrana, who posted nearly half a billion euro loss last year, need to drastically reduce their wage bill. It will enable them to not only sign new players, but also be eligible to qualify for European competitions.
The club announced in 2020 that star players Gerard Pique, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Clement Lenglet and Frenkie de Jong all signed contract extensions on reduced wages.
