Pep Guardiola's hopes of a reunion with Lionel Messi have been dashed after it emerged the Barcelona star has extended his contract at the Nou Camp.
The Argentine ace's future had been in doubt as he had not put pen to paper on a new deal, with his contract due to expire next summer.
Manchester City chief Guardiola has been linked with a move for the 30-year-old, who he used to manage with the Catalans.
However, Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has attempted to allay fears over Messi's future, insisting he has already committed his future to the club.
Speaking to 8TV, Bartomeu explained: "The official photo with the signature we will do, there's no rush. The contract was signed by his father, as well as that of his foundation and his image contract.
"He doesn't need to sign it, his father already has. He is already playing with the new contract. There's no better test to his commitment than to see him play."
Messi's new deal - understood to run until 2021 - reportedly contains a a release clause of €300million.
But Bartomeu previously told Sport.es : "Barça will never make a player stay if he tells us that he wants to go, as it happens in other clubs in Europe.
”We have a way of being different from other clubs, we think the players are happy here to play and to perform.
"It is the same if the clause is 500, 600, 1,000 or 1,500, we can put the clause we want because if a player wants to leave, we will have to sit down and talk to him to see how we do.
"It is what we miss with Neymar, if he had done so, would have been better for everyone."