Lionel Messi has hit out at Barcelona's bigwigs for their handling of pay cut measures at the Nou Camp.

The Catalan side, like the majority of sporting organisations around the globe, are looking for the best way to handle the financial ramifications of the coronavirus pandemic.

Laws in Spain allow the club to apply for an ERTE, which means they can impose a temporary pay cut of up 70% on their employees during these unprecedented times.

Messi and his team-mates will take the deduction but the law would've meant non-playing staff also had to accept the same cut.

The Argentine though released a statement on his Instagram which stated the club's employees would retain the entirety of their salary.

Lionel Messi is not happy with how players have been portrayed (
Image:
Getty Images)

It read: “Beyond the reduction of 70% of our salaries during the state of alarm, we are also going to make further contribution to ensure that the employees can continue to be paid 100% of their salaries for as long as this situation lasts."

But the statement also showed mounting tension at the club with Messi also writing about how the players were willing to take a pay cut, yet a negotiation seemed so hard to come by.

Media leaks had made it seem as if the squad were opposed to reducing their income, which the Argentine maintains is not the case.

“A lot has been written and said about the football first team at FC Barcelona, when it comes to the players’ salaries during this state of alarm,” the statement opened.

“First of all, we would like to clarify that we have always been willing to apply a wage cut, because we understand perfectly that this is an exceptional situation and we are ALWAYS the first to help the club when we have been asked to.

"Indeed, we have often done so on our own initiative in those moments in which we have considered it important or necessary.

“For that reason, we cannot help but be surprised by the fact that from within the club there are those trying to put us under the microscope or apply pressure for us to do something that we have always been clear that we would do,

“In fact, if an agreement has taken a few days to be reached it is simply because we were seeking a formula to help the club and also to help its employees in these very difficult times.

“If we did not speak publicly before, it was because our priority was to find real solutions that could truly help the club and also those who are going to be most affected by this situation.”