La Liga president Javier Tebas has warned Barcelona that they must still trim their wage bill further, and activating economic levers will "not work" next year.
The Catalan giants have endured financial turmoil off the pitch for a couple of years now and had racked up debts of up to €1bn (£870.1m) at one point.
Barcelona boss Xavi therefore welcomed a good chunk of free agents to the club in the summer, but the cash was splashed on Raphinha, Jules Kounde and Robert Lewandowski.
However, Barcelona could not register all of their new signings in time due to their precarious financial situation, with Kounde missing from their La Liga opener with Rayo Vallecano.
In order to finance their big-money deals, Joan Laporta sold 25% of Barcelona's television rights for the next 25 years to American firm Sixth Street, while 49% of Barca Studios was also sold.
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Nevertheless, Tebas has warned Barcelona that they must find a way to cut their wage bill down from €656m (£570.8m) down to €500m (£435.1m) for the 2023-24 campaign.
"If they go out of the Champions League, they will have less income but they will not have to pay bonuses. That will not change much," Tebas told Mundo Deportivo.
"The levers have worked for them this season but not for the next one. They have to reduce salary mass, they cannot continue with more than 500 million euros. Because if not, next season we will find the 1/4 rule for them again."
A host of big-name stars could leave Barcelona in 2023 as the club attempt to balance the books, with Jordi Alba, Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets and Sergi Roberto among them.
Roberto and Busquets have both entered the final 12 months of their contracts with the Catalan side, and both are expected to seek pastures new at the end of the campaign.
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Meanwhile, Pique and Alba are both out of contract in 2024 but have been largely peripheral figures so far this term, with the latter now facing competition from Alejandro Balde at left-back.
Memphis Depay will also be leaving on a free transfer at the end of the season as things stand, and Galatasaray are said to be planning a shock January move for the Dutchman.
In terms of possible big-money sales, Frenkie de Jong's future is still shrouded in uncertainty after Manchester United tried and failed to acquire his services in the summer.
The midfielder has revealed that Laporta pressured him to leave the club in the summer window, and the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea could attempt to prise him away from Camp Nou next year.
A recent report claimed that Chelsea have been given the green light to make a move for De Jong in January, with Busquets, Gavi and Pedri often preferred in the middle.
However, De Jong did play the full 90 in Sunday's 4-0 win over Athletic Bilbao, which keeps Barcelona three points behind leaders Real Madrid in the La Liga table.
Ben Knapton
