Mr. Tebas has done the work for us: Barcelona vice president aims dig at La Liga chief over Lionel Messi's departure

Lionel Messi's Barcelona departure is still getting some attention as the finger-pointing continues among the concerned parties. Barca's economic vice president Eduard Romeu has aimed a dig at La Liga chief Javier Tebas over the departure of the Argentine this summer. Romeu was quoted as saying.

"Mr. Tebas has done the work for us regarding Lionel Messi." We had a problem called Financial Fair Play due to an inherited situation, but if we signed a document we could have a different understanding. In the end, that was not possible because it was something that could not be signed because it compromised the solvency of the club and it was a 50-year mortgage for an exorbitant price."

Romeu added:

"The fund invests two billion euros and turns it into 22 billion euros. For a club like Barcelona that means a financial cost of more than 13 percent and we have the option of financing ourselves for less than two percent. We would have loved Messi to stay, but we couldn't accept it on those terms. The club is above anyone."

Lionel Messi was forced to end his association with Barcelona this summer due to the Blaugrana's terrible financial situation. While both parties wanted to continue, La Liga's wage cap policy ensured nothing of such nature materialized.

The Argentine ended up making a switch to Paris Saint-Germain, with whom he signed a two-year deal. Both parties have moved on, facing what lies ahead in their respective journeys this season.

La Liga president Javier Tebas

Is Barcelona losing their identity due to the absence of Lionel Messi?

Barcelona earned an impressive 4-2 victory against Real Sociedad in their first La Liga game of the season to kick-start the post-Messi era in style. However, they have endured a torrid run of late, playing out a 1-1 draw with Athletic Bilbao in their second league game before earning a narrow 2-1 victory over Getafe last time out.

In the absence of Lionel Messi, Ronald Koeman's men are struggling for an identity. The Blaugrana's well-known free-flowing attacking style seems to be a thing of the past. This was evident in Tuesday's 3-0 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich, where they failed to record a single shot on goal throughout the 90 minutes.