Barcelona is believed to still owe up to €144 million on a variety of incoming transfers from years ago, including €50 million on just Philippe Coutinho and Miralem Pjanic, who both permanently left Camp Nou.
In 2018, Barça and Liverpool reached an agreement worth up to €160 million, making Coutinho one of the most expensive players in history. The Brazilian’s fortunes quickly turned, though, and he spent time on loan at both Aston Villa and Bayern Munich before joining the latter for a pittance this year.
Pjanic, on the other hand, was a part of an odd double deal in which the Catalans also sent Arthur Melo to Juventus in the summer of 2020.
According to AS, the club still owes 144 million euros in transfer fees, which will be disclosed in Barça’s most recent economic report, which will be distributed to members in the coming months.
They are, however, owed just under €130 million themselves, with numerous modern deals arranged with staggered payment structures.
Apart from the remaining debts for Pjanic ($36 million) and Coutinho ($14 million), Barça owes Ajax ($46 million) for Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Dest.
The state of Barça’s finances has improved significantly since the club’s financial crisis peaked, but vice president of economics at Camp Nou Eduard Romeu said earlier this week that more needs to be done.
“We have saved Barça, but we still haven’t resolved it,” Romeu explained. “We don’t have it healthy; it involves a lot of austerity, a lot of rigour and there is a lot of work to do. In the 2024/25 season we will be at the level that corresponds to us.”