Messi's dad writes letter disputing Barcelona's €700m buyout clause of his son after La Liga ruling

Jorge Messi, the father and representative of Barcelona star Lionel, has disputed a La Liga ruling which stated that the club are contractually entitled to a €700m buyout clause for the six-time Ballon d'Or winning star.

Messi rocked Barcelona last month by announcing his desire to leave the club he has represented since he was a boy following a season of internal dispute within the Camp Nou which led to the axing of former head coach Quique Setien, as well as a cull of several members of the club's upper management.

The Argentine cited a clause in his contract which allows him to leave for free at the end of any season - something which Barcelona maintained that expired earlier in the summer, a point which was disputed by Messi's camp.

The rancor between the two parties led to a host of Europe's top clubs exploring a potential move for the the player considered by many to be the world's best, with Manchester City understood to be particularly keen, but Messi's Camp Nou exit was complicated by a La Liga ruling which stated that they considered Barcelona's interpretation of his contract valid - meaning that a transfer could only be forced through by a club agreeing to pay the reported €700m ($826m) fee.

However, in a letter to La Liga president Javier Tebas issued on Friday afternoon, Jorge Messi disputed the ruling and claimed that there was an "obvious error" in their interpretation of Messi's contract.

"We do not know which contract is the one they have analzyed," Jorge Messi wrote, via translation, "and what are the bases on which they concluded that that it would have an applicable 'termination clause' in case the player decides to urge the unilateral termination of the same, with effect from the end of the 2019/2020 sports season.

"This is due to an obvious error on your part. Thus, as literally stated in clause 8.2.3.6 of the contract signed between the club and the player, 'This compensation will not apply on termination of the contract by unilateral decision, effective from the end of the season 2019/2020."

Jorge Messi met with Barcelona president Josep Bartomeu this week to attempt to persuade the club to accept a lower monetary sum for the transfer of the player to another club, though it is understood that the meeting ending without any form of agreement.

Rumors emerged early on Friday that Messi has admitted defeat in his quest to leave for at least another year, after which the clause which enables him to leave for free could once again be activated but the letter issued on Friday appears to fly in the face of those reports, and hints that the next step in the saga could take place in the Spanish courts - something that the club are understandably keen to avoid.