Spain's La Liga have released a statement saying Lionel Messi's Barcelona contract was still valid, days after his shock announcement that he wants to leave the club and hours after he failed to attend a pre-season medical.
Messi's failure to show underlined the 33-year-old's determination to leave the club he has been with throughout his career, meaning he wouldn't be allowed to train on Monday even if he did turn up.
Stunned fans continued to wander around Camp Nou and the club's training ground fearing the worse with the Argentine superstar seemingly prepared to got to war.
The six-times world player of the year insists he has a clause in his contract that allows him to leave on a free transfer - a claim disputed by Barcelona and now by La Liga.
The ruling body said the only way a club can sign the Argentine forward is if he triggers a release clause of €700 million (Dh3060m).
"In compliance with the applicable rule, La Liga will not approve a request to be de-registered as a player with the Spanish football federation, unless the amount in the release clause has been paid," La Liga said.
Footage showed players arriving for coronavirus tests on Sunday and Messi did not appear. He had been due at Barcelona's training ground at 10.15am local time but a club source confirmed he had not arrived.
La Liga's stance is a blow to Messi's hopes of a quick departure and to those clubs wishing to sign him.
Premier League Manchester City are the favourites, which would allow Messi to link up with his former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola but such a large fee would put off any deals.
Messi, who has won more than 30 major trophies with the Spanish club and scored more than 600 goals, earns around one million euros per week.
He informed Barca on Tuesday he wished to leave immediately, plunging the club into new turmoil less than two weeks after their humiliating 8-2 Champions League quarter-final defeat by Bayern Munich.
Messi's lawyers plan to invoke a clause in his four-year contract, signed in 2017, which would have allowed the forward to leave the club for free if he had requested it by June 10.
They will argue that that date - nominally the end of the season - is now irrelevant after the coronavirus pandemic forced an extension of the La Liga season deep into August.
Messi's adoring fans at Barcelona were split over his apparent determination to force a move.
"A captain cannot abandon ship if it is sinking, but there isn't much time left until the end of his career and he has the right to choose what he wants," Eva Domingo, 39, said as she took a photo of graffiti depicting Messi as Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara pulling along a suitcase saying Manchester.
"I think he should sit down and talk if he wants to go, he should pay 700 million, and if not, then one more year here," said Pablo Garcia, wearing an FC Barcelona face mask.
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The years Ramadan fell in May
THE SPECS
BMW X7 xDrive 50i
Engine: 4.4-litre V8
Transmission: Eight-speed Steptronic transmission
Power: 462hp
Torque: 650Nm
Price: Dh600,000
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
RESULT
Copa del Rey, semi-final second leg
Real Madrid 0
Barcelona 3 (Suarez (50', 73' pen), Varane (69' OG)
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3EName%3A%20Cashew%0D%3Cbr%3EStarted%3A%202020%0D%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Ibtissam%20Ouassif%20and%20Ammar%20Afif%0D%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3EIndustry%3A%20FinTech%0D%3Cbr%3EFunding%20size%3A%20%2410m%0D%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Mashreq%2C%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Miss Granny
Director: Joyce Bernal
Starring: Sarah Geronimo, James Reid, Xian Lim, Nova Villa
3/5
(Tagalog with Eng/Ar subtitles)
Tips for entertaining with ease
· Set the table the night before. It’s a small job but it will make you feel more organised once done.
· As the host, your mood sets the tone. If people arrive to find you red-faced and harried, they’re not going to relax until you do. Take a deep breath and try to exude calm energy.
· Guests tend to turn up thirsty. Fill a big jug with iced water and lemon or lime slices and encourage people to help themselves.
· Have some background music on to help create a bit of ambience and fill any initial lulls in conversations.
· The meal certainly doesn’t need to be ready the moment your guests step through the door, but if there’s a nibble or two that can be passed around it will ward off hunger pangs and buy you a bit more time in the kitchen.
· You absolutely don’t have to make every element of the brunch from scratch. Take inspiration from our ideas for ready-made extras and by all means pick up a store-bought dessert.
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
Five personal finance podcasts from The National
To help you get started, tune into these Pocketful of Dirham episodes
·
Balance is essential to happiness, health and wealth
·
What is a portfolio stress test?
·
What are NFTs and why are auction houses interested?
·
How gamers are getting rich by earning cryptocurrencies
·
Should you buy or rent a home in the UAE?
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
