Memphis Depay is set to take a 30% pay cut to register with the Barcelona first team, according to Goal. The player originally agreed on a €7 million salary with the Blaugrana. However, the club will not be able to pay him any more than €5 million per season.
Barcelona are currently in a very difficult financial situation, and need to reduce their wage bill dramatically to be able to register the new talents. They have already announced and presented Sergio Aguero, Eric Garcia and Emerson Royal as Barcelona players alongside Depay this summer.
But, their wage bill is 110% of their income and they will have to free up a lot of room on their books to formally register the new players. In light of their financial problems, Barcelona have done a good job of recruiting free agents this summer. Despite avoiding transfer fees for their recruits, they will have to find a way to accommodate everybody on the wage bill in accordance with La Liga rules.
According to Goal, Depay is happy to help the club out in any way he can and taking a pay cut is something the player can deal with. No information has been released about potentially reimbursing him in the future, but it can be assumed that it will be done when finances are stable.
The Spanish giants are prioritising the renewal of Lionel Messi’s contract, and it will possibly be announced after the finals of the Copa America which will see Messi’s Argentina take on Brazil.
