There was no player more desperate to leave a club last summer than Joao Felix. The former Benfica youngster was returning from a six-month spell at Chelsea, where he struggled to make an impact. Reports even suggested that Felix was so desperate that he used the famous journalist Fabrizio Romano to secure a loan move to the club.
Part of his desperation was accepting a very small wage for a player who was widely regarded as one of the best young players in the world. However, his pay has now been increased by 900%, as confirmed by the La Liga president, but a permanent move to Barcelona is now very much in doubt.
Xavi reportedly not interested in extending Joao Felix’s Barcelona stay
Barcelona are looking nothing like the team they were last season when they claimed the La Liga trophy over Real Madrid and their cross-city rivals Atletico Madrid.
Xavi’s men dominated Spanish football last season, and despite their disappointing campaign in Europe, they managed to hold on to their domestic title, which spelt a successful period for Xavi and his men.
However, this season hasn’t been the same despite doing some good business in the summer, including the loan deal of Atleti youngster Joao Felix. The Portuguese winger joined Barcelona after a few bad seasons at Atletico Madrid, where he’s been deemed surplus despite being the club’s most expensive signing in their history.
Felix already has six goals and three assists in over 20 games across all competitions for Xavi. However, recent reports suggest that the former Barcelona midfield maestro does not wish to keep the Portuguese international at the Camp Nou beyond this season.
It’s understandable why Xavi may be reluctant to keep Felix. After all, he hasn’t been as consistent as Barcelona would have hoped when they decided to take a chance on him by signing him on loan.
Felix receives 900% salary hike
When Joao Felix decided to join Barcelona on a season-long loan, he took a huge paycut, and was playing on a salary of £344,440-a-year due to Barcelona’s financial constraints.
Barcelona have now increased his salary by 900% to be in line with Financial Fair Play rules, as confirmed by Javier Tebas, the president of La Liga. The former Chelsea loanee is now entitled to a base salary of £3,444,400 per year, which is a 900% increase from his previous deal at the club.
Despite Xavi’s reluctance to keep the Portuguese winger at the club, people in the position of power at Barcelona believe Felix is justifying their decision to sign him on loan, as he’s one of the most consistent players in a rather inconsistent season the club is having.
With Lewandowski out of form for the past few months, Joao Felix has stepped up his game to score some crucial goals for Xavi, and if he continues to perform at a high level, he’ll leave Xavi with no choice but to want him to stay at the club beyond this season.
Will Barcelona make Joao Felix’s loan permanent?
