La Liga president Javier Tebas has insisted Barcelona must raise €200m (£177m) to spend money in next summer’s transfer window.
Tebas said Barcelona failed to meet La Liga’s financial regulations despite short-term spending through a range of economic instruments, including the sale of some of its television rights. .
Spanish clubs spent a lot of money on Robert Lewandowski, Jules Kunde, Rafinha and others last summer, but Tebas says he won’t spend that much unless he cuts investments or sells players. I declared that I could not.
speak in Speaking at the Financial Times’ Business of Football Summit, Tebas said:
“Barcelona have been involved in questionable behavior, affecting La Liga and acting accordingly. We have ruled that they cannot sign any more players.
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“They sold €700m (£620m) of TV rights and tried to find different ways to resolve the situation, but they cannot do it next season. We have strict economic controls: at the end of each window, we tell all La Liga clubs how much we can spend.
“For Barcelona, minus €200m as they have to cut their spending on wages and transfers from €650m to €450m (£532m to £399m). (£177m) budget.
“They need to invest less in players and we have been encouraging them to sell players because every time they make a sale, they can spend 40% of it.”
The news will be a heavy blow for Barcelona, who are currently at the top of the La Liga table and are enjoying a successful season under Xavi.
Last summer, Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong was linked with a move from the club, embroiled in a transfer frenzy with Manchester United, who were eager to serve the Dutch national team.
However, the transfer did not materialize and De Jong remained at the Camp Nou this season.
Barcelona will play Valencia at home in La Liga next Sunday.
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(Photo: Getty Images)