Barcelona have warned Lionel Messi that he will be fined if he fails to turn up for training, according to MARCA. The Spanish report claims that the Argentine will be slapped with a 'serious' fine by the Catalan club if he does not report for training.
The report adds that Lionel Messi failed to turn up on Sunday and Monday. These have already been counted as two offences, and a third one would result in the club taking severe action.
MARCA report that the punishment could be total suspension with a significant fine. The same report adds that it could be up to 25% of his monthly salary or 11 days of his salary, whichever comes first.
Lionel Messi has made it clear to the club that he does not wish to play for them anymore. He is reportedly looking for a move to Manchester City, with the Premier League side also open to signing him.
The Argentine star is using the clause in his contract that allows him to leave for free this summer. He is not under contract at the Catalan club as the new season is yet to begin, as per the report.
However, Barcelona and La Liga insist that Messi's clause of leaving as a free agent has expired and he will have to report to the club. They also add that the contract is valid for the season and there is no way he is leaving unless a club activates his €700 million release clause.
Joseph Bartomeu has offered to resign from his position as the president of FC Barcelona but only if Lionel Messi publically admits that he will remain at the club. He is under a lot of pressure to keep the Argentine at the club but things have not been going his way.
MARCA's report also adds that Bartomeu is planning to hold a meeting with Messi's father, Jorge. He wants to have the meeting this week so that the Barcelona star will remain at the club and start training as soon as possible.
However, reports suggest that Messi's father would just reconfirm his son's desire to leave, and an exit plan will be discussed instead.