Lamine Yamal makes contract demand for Barcelona renewal | OneFootball

Barcelona and Lamine Yamal seem destined to commit to a long-term deal together this summer, but as President Joan Laporta admitted earlier this week, the signature is yet to be added to the contract. If there was any doubt over the importance of the 17-year-old to their project, his new contract will clear that up.

“We’ll have to suffer,” said Laporta regarding Lamine Yamal’s new deal, which they have been renegotiating with agent Jorge Mendes. The summer of 2023, Barcelona agreed a three-year contract renewal, with the rough terms agreed to extend that deal until 2030 or 2031 once he had turned 18. The maximum contract length a player under 18 can sign for is three years.

Barcelona have had to improve Lamine Yamal’s deal

Barcelona have had to renegotiate those terms this season though, as a result of his rapid rise to the summit of world football. The Blaugrana have been happy to do so, feeling he should receive a deal that reflects his status, and ultimately, keeps him happy at the club he regularly declares his loyalty to.

Image via Diario Sport / X

Lamine Yamal could become Barcelona’s top earner

According to Cadena SER, the shorter version of their recent negotiations has been that Lamine Yamal wants to become Barcelona’s top-paid player. Currently, that is Robert Lewandowski, who they say is earning €16m net per annum.

The Blaugrana want to place Lamine Yamal at the top of their wage scale, but it is not clear if that is the new one, or the one Lewandowski is at the top of. They feel that the Polish forward’s deal is outdated, and that they should renegotiate lower terms with the 36-year-old to bring his earnings down.

Renewal season at Barcelona

Liverpool forward Luis Diaz has been cited as the top transfer target for Barcelona this summer, and quite possibly the only one, with Director of Football Deco set to invest most of the available budget in contract renewals. A deal has reportedly been struck with Raphinha over a new deal, but after Pedri and Ronald Araujo also signed new deals in January, Frenkie de Jong is next on the list.