A court has reversed its decision to allow gavi being registered as a first-team player at Barcelona because the Catalan club filed its lawsuit late, La Liga said on Monday.
Gavi, 18, signed a new contract at the Camp Nou in September until 2026, but the Spanish top flight did not approve the deal because Barca exceeded their spending limit.
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Barca filed a lawsuit against that decision and, on January 31, a court ordered La Liga to accept the registration of Gavi, whose previous terms expire this summer.
The ruling said that failure to do so “would imply the player’s free agency and, therefore, would cause serious and irreparable damage to Barça.”
However, La Liga said the ruling has now been overturned because Barca missed a deadline, making Gavi’s new contract invalid.
“LaLiga received a notification from Barcelona Mercantile Court 10 informing of the lifting of the precautionary measures agreed in the Gavi case,” LaLiga said in a statement on Monday. “The reason is Barcelona’s failure to comply with the deadlines set for the filing of the main lawsuit.”
Sources told ESPN that the club “did not miss any deadlines” and that the decision has been made by a “lawyer for the administration of justice, so it is not final and (Gavi’s record) will not be reversed until make it final.”
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In the worst case, Gavi could technically become a free agent in the summer if there is no resolution before then, although Barca sources have told ESPN they don’t expect that to happen.
Even if he loses his first-team registration, the Spain international will still be able to play for Barca this season under his previous registration as a youth team player.
However, the Catalan club have work to do to ensure that his contract is registered for next season. They are also about to register Ronald AraujoThe new terms of , which were agreed in April 2022.
La Liga president Javier Tebas has said they need to cut almost 200 million euros of their annual spending before the 2023-24 season, adding that they will not be able to afford signings this summer.
Meanwhile, Barca president Joan Laporta has said the club will work hard to become stronger and is targeting a right-back and striker.
