Josep Maria Bartomeu has denied reports that he had decided to resign from his position as Barcelona president, following confirmation that Lionel Messi had informed the club of his desire to leave.
Messi's future has been an on-running saga, with the recent 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League exacerbating an already existing issue.
Coach Quique Setien was fired in the wake of that game, to be replaced by Ronald Koeman at the end of last week, and one of his first actions was to tell Luis Suarez, a longtime Messi ally, the he was surplus to requirements.
And on Tuesday Koeman allegedly informed Messi that he 'has lost all of his privileges' at the club, prompting the Argentine to make an announcement that he wanted to be released from his contract.
Whether he can be released is an issue of contention, with a clause allowing him to leave on a free should he so with thought to be very much in doubt.
Catalan-based newspaper Sport reported initially that, following negotiations with the board of directors, Bartomeu had decided to step down.
But he later confirmed that this was not the case, and at the moment he remains president of Barcelona, while Messi's club for next season remains fundamentally unclear.
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