Ramon Calderon expects Barcelona to agree a reduced fee for the transfer of “priceless” captain Lionel Messi.

Messi has asked to leave Barca – his only senior club – after a difficult season at Camp Nou in which they failed to win a trophy amid tension between the board and the talismanic forward.

The 33-year-old has a clause in his contract that allows him to terminate his deal and leave the club for free at the end of each season.

Rival clubs would otherwise have to pay €700 million (£627m/$828m) to release Messi from his contract, a fee that would appear beyond any suitor between the demands of Financial Fair Play and the impact of the global crisis.

But Calderon, the former Real Madrid president, is confident Josep Maria Bartomeu will accept a compromise.

“I am pretty sure they will reach a friendly agreement,” Calderon told Stats Perform News . “They have had 20 years together.

“Messi has given his best for Barcelona, and Barcelona have given their all to Messi. They have won many titles together. He has won six Ballons d’Or.

“I am convinced they will not go for a legal fight and they will solve it in a friendly way. It would be what I would try, and I am sure Bartomeu [as Barcelona president] will do the same.

“I know him. He is a calm man, and he will look for the best solution for both. There is no need to go for any legal fight or any controversy.”