Messi agrees to sign new contract with Barcelona

Madrid: FC Barcelona forward Lionel Messi has reportedly agreed to a new contract which will see his earnings increase to 30 million euros ($33.7 million) a year after tax, with a buyout clause which will rise from 250 million euros ($281 million) to 400 million euros ($450 million). The 29-year-old’s current contract expires at the end of June 2018 and negotiations over the new contract have dragged on for several months, raising fears than he could be tempted away by a big-money offer from another club, reports Xinhua news agency. The new contract will not be signed until the start of July, however, for accounting reasons which would place the cost of the deal in the accounts of the 2017-18 season, rather than in the campaign which recently finished. (IANS)