La Liga Confirms Gavi Is No Longer Barcelona's No.6 Amid Contract Registration Row

A contract dispute between FC Barcelona and La Liga has resulted in the squad number of Gavi being changed from no.30 to no.6. Gavi's new contract was blocked.

Gavi is officially no longer Barcelona's no.6.

The 18-year-old midfielder had seen his squad number upgraded from no.30 in January after he signed a new contract with the club.

It was his first senior contract and it also came with a significant pay-rise.

La Liga had tried to block Barcelona's attempt to register Gavi to his first senior contract on the basis that the club had already exceeded the agreed squad budget for the season.

That attempt initially failed but, following an appeal, Gavi's first-team registration has since been cancelled.

Gavi pictured in action for Barcelona against Real Madrid earlier this month :: IMAGO/NurPhoto/Jose Breton

Can Gavi Still Play For Barcelona?

Gavi is still available to play for Barcelona's first team this season, although he will revert to his previous squad number for the remainder of the campaign.

Barcelona's official squad list on LaLiga.com was updated this week to confirm that Gavi had gone back to being his club's no.30.

Gavi pictured (bottom row, second from right) on Barcelona's squad list on LaLiga.com after his jersey number was downgraded from no.6 to no.30 / La Liga

The enforced squad number change should be the least of Barca's worries though.

Because the senior contract that Gavi had signed has been ruled invalid, the risk of him leaving the Camp Nou has increased.

Gavi's new deal had included a €1 billion release clause but that is no longer in place.

In theory, Gavi could now leave Barca on a free transfer in June, which is when his youth contract had been due to expire.

However, Barca officials are said to be confident that Gavi will sign another deal once the club's wage bill has been reduced sufficiently by the departures of other players.