Barcelona's first team squad is willing to accept a 70 percent pay cut due to "exceptional" circumstances facing the club amid the coronavirus pandemic, confirmed Lionel Messi.

Additionally, Messi revealed that the reigning LaLiga champions will also help to ensure the club's non-sporting employees receive their full salaries throughout the current state of emergency. 

The Argentine star also refuted reports that the first team players were reluctant to lower their wages and needed to be coerced into doing so by others within the club.

"Much has been written and said about the Barcelona first team with regards to players' salaries during this period of emergency," Messi wrote in a statement on social media.

      View this post on Instagram                       A post shared by Leo Messi (@leomessi) on Mar 30, 2020 at 4:11am PDT

"First of all, we want to clarify that our wish has always been to lower the salary we receive, because we fully understand that this is an exceptional situation and we have ALWAYS been the first ones to help the club when asked.

"We have also done this many times on our own volition, other times we have thought it necessary or important.

"That is why it does not cease to surprise us that from within the club there were those claiming they tried to put pressure on us to do something that we always knew we would do. In fact, if this agreement has been delayed by a few days, it is simply because we were looking for a formula to help the club and its workers in these difficult times.

"For our part, the time has come to announce that, aside from the 70% reduction of our salary during this state of emergency, we will also make contributions so that the club's employees can collect one hundred percent of their salary as long as this situation lasts.

"We resisted speaking until now because our priority was to find real solutions to help the club, but also those who were going to be more affected by this situation.

"We do not want to say goodbye without sending an affectionate greeting and a lot of strength to all the culers who are experiencing hardships during these very difficult times, as well as to all those who patiently await the end of this crisis in their homes. Very soon we are going to get out of this and we will all do it together. Visca Barça and Visca Catalunya ".