Jordi Alba moves a step closer to silencing Barcelona critics

Despite the misleading claims made against him, Jordi Alba has proved his critics wrong by accepting a pay cut at Barcelona.

Jordi Alba has reached a total agreement with Barcelona to lower his salary, according to Mundo Deportivo. The Catalan has agreed to a 25% pay cut at Camp Nou. The club can also defer part of the payment for his wages until 2024.

Alba is the second of four Barcelona captains to accept a considerable pay cut after Gerard Pique. The defender took a ‘significant’ reduction in his wages nine days ago. This action alone helped the debt-ridden club register three new players – Memphis Depay, Eric Garcia, and Rey Manaj – in La Liga. The other two captains in Sergio Busquets and Sergi Roberto are expected to follow suit.

Joan Laporta says Barça’s gross debt has risen to €1.35 billion. Club accounts show losses of €481m for last season (revenue €655m vs outgoings of €1.136bn). He says coronavirus only to blame for €91m of the losses

— Samuel Marsden (@samuelmarsden) August 16, 2021

These developments will prove some relief for Barcelona in these troublesome times. Joan Laporta revealed last week that the club has a net worth of -€451 million and a debt of up to €1.35 billion.

These financial struggles, along with claims that certain players refused pay cuts, have dominated headlines in Catalonia. They led to Lionel Messi’s departure to Paris Saint-Germain, something Alba denied having any involvement in.

“It’s not true [that Messi left because of a pay cut the captains rejected],” the full-back said in a press conference last week. “The Messi stuff was separate from the captains, between the club and him.

“I can’t control everything that’s said, but I’ve been around. Nothing will surprise me. If 10 out of 10 news articles about Jordi Alba are negative, it’s normal that people think badly. I can’t stand being doubted.”