Messi faces £1.1m fine, suspension if…

Lionel Messi is facing a suspension and £1.1million fine for missing Barcelona training as his “free agent” row with the club ignites.

The Barcelona superstar did not report to training – nor Sunday’s coronavirus testing for the squad.

According to Marca, Messi – who will reportedly be offered a record £450m over five years by Man City – is set to incur “serious penalties” as a result of his actions.

Messi, 33, believes he is no longer an employee of the club but Barca chiefs insist he is still the Nou Camp side’s captain.

That, according to the report, is in accordance “with the collective agreement of LaLiga and the Association of Spanish Footballers”.

Marca reported that the document establishes that a “serious offence can be judged when a player ‘abandons work’ for two occasions without just cause”.

Skipping the coronavirus test was one and missing training.

Marca claimed a third absence can result in 11 days of his salary being withdrawn or a fine of 25 per cent of his monthly salary.

It can also lead to what is termed “total suspension”.

Messi earns £54m a year at Barca – so a quarter of his monthly wage is just over £1.1m.

The six-time Ballon d’Or winner makes around £148,000 a day – so an 11-day fine would equal roughly £1.6m.

However, Barca chiefs including Josep Maria Bartomeu are said to be reluctant to punish the club’s greatest ever player.

read also:Barcelona table strange condition to let Messi leave for free

Messi wants to leave the club but Nou Camp bosses are desperate to keep on good terms with him.

Furious Barcelona fans protested against president Bartomeu last week after Messi handed in his transfer request.

Club bosses do not want a repeat of those actions – nor those that followed Barca’s unveiling of Francisco Trincao, which turned into another anti-Bartomeu incident.