La Liga not worried about Lionel Messi's potential Barcelona departure, according to Javier Tebas

La Liga president Javier Tebas has stated that the league is not worried about the potential departure of superstar Lionel Messi from Barcelona. Tebas, known for his controversial statements, admitted that he would prefer Lionel Messi to stay at Barcelona, but the league was ready for his exit.

Tebas pointed out that the departures of Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid and Neymar from Barcelona had not resulted in the league being affected.

"We would prefer Messi to stay in La Liga but Ronaldo and Neymar left and we have not noticed any difference. We are ready," said Tebas.

Manchester City have been heavily linked with the Barcelona attacker and Tebas took a jab at the way Manchester City were run.

"It seems the only club in the Premier League that talks about registering Messi is Manchester City, who compete outside the rules. I am not the only one saying this," said Tebas.

Manchester City are expected to make a move to sign Messi in January, reports The Sun ✍️Barcelona are desperate for cash and could accept an offer as low as £50 million 💰 pic.twitter.com/igeW8hR9NR

— Goal (@goal) November 18, 2020

Lionel Messi has only one year left on his Barcelona contract

Barcelona are not in a sound position financially and were unable to spend much in the summer transfer window due to their constraints. When questioned as to whether Barcelona might go into administration, Tebas refuted the rumour.

"Barcelona are not considering insolvency proceedings. Their debt might be slightly larger but they were perfectly solvent pre-COVID 19. However, COVID-19 has come along and taken away a lot of revenue," said Tebas.

Lionel Messi has only one year left on his contract with Barcelona. The 33-year admitted in the summer that he would like to leave the club, but a move failed to occur.

Messi, as a result, continues to captain Barcelona. However, he has not been at his best this season. Teenagers like Pedri and Ansu Fati have taken on the attacking responsibilities at the club due to the faltering form of Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann.

Lionel Messi's touch is out of this world 🌎 pic.twitter.com/g6VyuJdJOC

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) November 13, 2020

Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus and Manchester United are all said to be interested in Lionel Messi, who can leave Barcelona on a free transfer next summer.

Regarded by many as the greatest player to have played the game, Messi made his Barcelona debut in 2004 and has gone on to make 741 appearances in all competitions, scoring 640 goals and providing countless assists.

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