Barcelona Feeling Pressure to Sort Lionel Messi New Deal

Lionel Messi's contract with Barcelona expires in 2018. Already, his teammates Luis Suarez and Neymar recently signed extensions until 2021. The question is, why is it taking Barca so long to offer the Argentinian superstar a new deal?

According to Sky Sports Spanish football expert Guillem Balague, there is no calendar for negotiations as of the moment and that no new deal has been put up on the table. The directors of Barcelona are in discussions as to give the offer at the end of the month. However, nothing has arrived and even the information has not reached the representatives of Messi. There has been a lot of pressure everywhere wondering why the deal hasn't been done yet when in 12 months Messi can negotiate his contract with anybody in the world.

Barcelona were quick to refute saying that the pressure put on them by newspapers, media and fans has got them into acting.  Some reports noted that Barca's move could be a negotiating tactic for Messi to lower his demands. The superstar made his debut in 2004 and is Barcelona's all-time leading goalscorer with 480 goals. He is also one of the most highly-paid football players in the world.

But Balague is optimistic that it is unlikely there will be a problem with his renewal even with Barcelona putting themselves under a lot of pressure than what was necessary. He says that the only way for Messi to leave Barcelona is if he gets really upset with the new deal that will be given to him. If respect is shown, then all's well that ends well.

Furthermore, Oscar Grau's statement on Barcelona not being able to afford Messi is misleading since the club do have the money after signing contracts with Rakuten and Nike. Moreover, they will soon have a new deal with Qatar Airways. Therefore, all Barca need to do is act on the matter, give Messi a new deal and stop being so calm and collected as things have seemingly backfired on them.