Barcelona star follows Gerard Pique in taking significant pay cut - Reports

Barcelona left-back Jordi Alba will follow in Gerard Pique's footsteps and take a significant pay cut to help the club ease off some of their financial burden, according to reports from ESPN.

Barcelona are in a financial crisis caused by the ongoing global pandemic and overspending. However, things seem to be heading in the right direction after Gerard Pique decided to voluntarily reduce this wage to help Barcelona register new signings Eric Garcia and Memphis Depay along with Rey Manaj.

Jordi Alba has become the second Barcelona player to accept a pay cut to help the Catalan giants balance their books. The 32-year-old full-back has a contract until 2024 which sees him pocket close to €15 million per annum. However, some reports claim that Alba is set to take a 25% pay cut on his existing salary.

Two other long serving players in Sergi Roberto and Sergio Busquets are set to follow Pique and Alba and could take a pay cut in the near future.

Barcelona will need to adhere to La Liga's regulations on transfer spending and wages. The limit was €600 million prior to the pandemic, which has now drastically reduced €347 million this season.

Jordi Alba has followed Gerard Pique in agreeing to a pay cut to help Barcelona's drive to decrease their wage bill following years of overspending, sources have confirmed to @samuelmarsden & @moillorens. https://t.co/3oCsEoWp0Z pic.twitter.com/RDb1caB6nd

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) August 23, 2021

It is worth noting that Barcelona have still not registered new arrival Sergio Aguero. The former Manchester City forward is out for at least two months after suffering an injury during pre-season. However, pay cuts from Alba, Busquets and Roberto should be enough from Blaugrana to register Aguero once he is fit.

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Also Read: David James' column - Greatest foreign XI in Premier League history

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Barcelona are still hoping to offload some of their fringe players

Barcelona are running out of time to offload some of their fringe players before the summer transfer window slams shut.

The Catalan giants still want to get rid of the likes of Samuel Umtiti and Miralem Pjanic in the coming few days. The aforementioned pair are on very high wages but are not in Ronald Koeman's plans for this season which is why they are on the transfer list as things stand.

A host of Serie A clubs are chasing Miralem Pjanic, with Fiorentina being the latest side interested in signing the 31-year-old Bosnian international.

🤝 Jordi Alba agrees to salary adjustment⏳ Busquets and Roberto still in talks🇮🇹 Italian clubs watching Pjanic ⚠️ Umtiti wants to stay 🔴 Distant positions b/w RB Leipzig & Barça over Ilaix Moriba 🗞 News Round-Up: https://t.co/STfpXqkL3q

— Reshad Rahman ✆ (@ReshadRahman_) August 23, 2021

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