Report: Lionel Messi to attempt to terminate Barcelona contract

Currently, Messi is signed through the end of the 2020-21 campaign. 

Spanish football insider Guillem Balague tweeted Messi's situation may not be cut and dry. Because the coronavirus pandemic pushed the end of the 2019-20 European calendar to August, Barcelona may claim that the original deadline to terminate his contract expired on June 10.

It's been widely reported Messi has a €700 million release clause attached to his rights if he is not legally able to leave on a free this summer. Only a handful of clubs in the world, at most, could afford Messi's astronomical wages, particularly at a time when so many throughout the sports world are facing financial difficulties due to the uncontrolled virus outbreak. 

On Monday, ESPN's Moises Llorens and Rodrigo Faez wrote that City had begun exploring the possibility of offering a bid for Messi without violating Financial Fair Play protocols. City's two-year ban from European competitions for FFP breaches was controversially overturned in July.

Messi and Barcelona are coming off a disappointing, trophy-less season that included rivals Real Madrid finishing atop the La Liga table, a quarterfinal exit from the Copa del Rey and a humiliating 8-2 defeat to Bundesliga winners Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinal. 

Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu and newly appointed manager Ronald Koeman both hoped Messi would commit the remainder of his physical prime to the club as recently as last week.