Gavi is no longer a Barca first team player
According to British newspaper The Athletic, the latest court ruling means that the release clause that allows Gavi to leave for free in the summer of 2023 is back in effect. The source said Barca intends to take further legal action and has about 20 days to appeal the latest ruling in the Provincial Court.
The Athletic described Gavi's extension as a "complicated situation" and at the heart of the tense relationship between Barca and La Liga over the past half year.
In September 2020, Gavi - at the age of 16 - signed his first professional contract with Barca and was promoted from the U16 team to the U19 team. After a sublime performance in the youth team, he was assigned to the first team by coach Ronald Koeman in the 2021-2022 season, and continued to be used by Xavi.
In September 2022, the owner of Camp Nou extended his contract with Gavi until the summer of 2025 with a release clause of more than 1 billion USD. But then, he was still registered as an academy player.
This new contract includes a clause allowing the Spanish midfielder to leave on a free basis if Barca do not register him as a first-team player by June 30, 2023. The owner of the Camp Nou can only promote Gavi as a first-team player when the transfer window opens.
Earlier this year, Barca applied to register the Spaniard under the terms of a new contract and let Gavi take over the iconic number 6 shirt - the number that belonged to incumbent coach Xavi while playing - instead of the current number 30. But by the end of January, Barca was still denied by La Liga to register Gavi to play in the first team because he had exceeded the salary limit. Therefore, before the mid-season transfer window closed, Barca sought another legal ruling without La Liga's knowledge to force the organizers to register Gavi in the first team list.
