Barcelona nearing season-defining financial boost - report

Barcelona face a crunch few days in their efforts to return to La Liga's 1:1 spending rules following several seasons of penny pinching and careful accountancy.

The Catalan giants have been paying the price for financial mismanagement and overspending under the previous regime, forcing them to fall in line with 1:4 spending caps. It has meant that for every €4 received or saved, the club can only spend €1, in order to get the finances into a healthier state.

As a reference point for the obstacles they have been facing, Real Madrid's salary cap in 2023/24 was €727m and Barcelona's was reduced to €204m after January.

But La Liga president Javier Tebas spoke with optimism about 1:1 - the freedom to spend €1 for every €1 raised - at the start of June, suggesting it wouldn't be far away if the club "resolve some important matters that are pending".

Mundo Deportivo reports that an agreement is "on track" to sell the 15% chunk of Barca Vision that had belonged to investment firm Libero prior to non-payment that prompted legal action. Should that deal be signed off in the coming days, it will be included in the 2023/24 accounts and it is then claimed it will be enough to finish the season in a small amount of profit and able to begin the new 2024/25 campaign back on 1:1 spending rules.

The report adds that Barca officials are "very proud" of the sale agreement because the club will hit its necessary financial objectives without resorting to player sales, activating further economic 'levers', or asking for advances on sponsorship income. It has also come at a time when the temporary move to Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys at Montjuic has significantly capped matchday revenue.

Thursday's board meeting could pave the way for some sort of announcement.

However, there still remain doubts. MD adds that some "economic experts" are of the opinion that the remaining €60m from previously selling off the stake in Barca Vision they never received still needs to be covered.

A separate report from SPORT also paints a less optimistic picture and goes against the idea that things will be brought in order without selling players. The publication writes that Barcelona would consider offers for Ilkay Gundogan, despite being perfectly happy with his input from a sporting perspective, to free up space on the wage bill and take full accounting advantage of having signed the veteran midfielder last summer without a transfer fee.

SPORT adds that as the "long summer" begins, Barca would still consider offers for most in the squad, with few to be considered "structural" to the long-term future.

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