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Barcelona are not in a position to finance a deal for Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski, according to LaLiga president Javier Tebas.
Lewandowski last week confirmed that he has informed Bayern he will not be extending his contract beyond the end of next season.
The Poland international hinted he is interested in a move away from the Allianz Arena in the upcoming transfer window, rather than departing as a free agent in a year’s time.
Barca are the favourites to land Europe’s most prolific striker, with head coach Xavi insisting age would not be a barrier when it comes to his rebuild project.
However, uncertainty lingers over whether Barca have the financial clout to make a move as they attempt to come through an economic crisis that has hit Camp Nou hard.
And unless certain players, such as midfielder Frenkie de Jong, are sold to bring in additional funds, Tebas does not see the Lewandowski transfer being a possibility.
“The numbers are easy: if you have more than €500million losses from the past two years, you have to recover money,” Tebas is quoted as saying by Spanish publication Sport.
“Lewandowski has one year left at Bayern. Between what he wants to earn and what Bayern want to take… as of today I don’t see him at Barcelona. Other things must happen.
“Selling players could be enough, depending on how much they raise and what Lewandowski costs. It could be €100m plus that is saved.
“De Jong could give them that possibility, but I don’t know if they are even planning to sell. To date they have not sold him.”
Lewandowski has scored 50 goals in 46 games for Bayern in all competitions this season, making him the top scorer among players from Europe’s top five leagues.
Next on that list is Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema with 44, followed by Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe with 36 in 45 matches.
Mbappe had been widely expected to join Benzema at Madrid next season, but reports on Friday suggested the forward might decide to stay at PSG.
However, Tebas expects the France international to end up at the Santiago Bernabeu in the coming weeks.
“I think he’ll be at Real Madrid, though one day he is white and another day he is black – he changes,” Tebas said. “But yes, I think [he’ll sign for Madrid].
”I have seen these twists and turns so many times – it’s not unexpected, because there are always twists.
“The feeling I have is that if he had wanted to renew he would have already done so, but I could be wrong.”
