Barcelona financial crisis: What happens if they can't register Lionel Messi?

FC Barcelona have so far been adamant that Lionel Messi is not going anywhere. Club president Joan Laporta has insisted that the player wants to stay, but the problem is that they are unable to sign his new contract because they are still unable to free up enough room in the salary cap. As such, it has been revealed that Messi may opt to wait until the winter transfer window in January to officially become a Barcelona player again.

It seems unthinkable for Messi to stay out of football for the rest of the year while waiting for the club to find a solution to their financial woes. However, the days are passing quickly and the club is having little luck when it comes to slashing expenditures for next season.

Barcelona have only managed to offload a handful of fringe players, and are already forcing the exits of several others. However, they have not been able to offload some of their highest earners, including French forward Antoine Griezmann.

Laporta and his board have also been holding meetings with the representatives of first team players, asking them to accept pay cuts. Messi has reportedly agreed to a 50% wage reduction for his new deal, but it's not as easy to ask for the same from players who have existing valid contracts.

Apart from Griezmann, the club is also having trouble selling the likes of Philippe Coutinho, Neto, Miralem Pjanic and Samuel Umtiti. These players have reasonable value, and their transfer fees could have helped the club towards reaching their salary cap threshold to accommodate Messi.

The new season is due to start in three weeks, and the club need to make some tough choices. Apart from Messi, they also have a confirmed signings like Sergio Aguero, Memphis Depay and Eric Garcia who are also awaiting registration.

Although Laporta has guaranteed that they are working with La Liga to get these players registered in time, the Messi deal is an entirely different story. According to Football Espana, the deadline for registration is at the end of August, just over a month from now.

It is unlikely for Messi to wait until January to get back on the pitch, and even if he does, there is no guarantee that the club can get its finances in order by then. Of course, Messi still has the time to decide to join another club, with many waiting in the wings should he decide to accept offers.

Lastly, Messi may also opt to sign a contract with a massively reduced salary, with the understanding that what he is really owed will be made up by the club one way or another in the future. To get this to work, the club still needs to free up enough space to accommodate all the other signings plus Messi's revised deal. It also remains to be seen if La Liga will let that workaround fly.