Lionel Messi is the best player in the game today, and without the Argentine, Barcelona are not half as good, even if they might have the talents of a Xavi Hernandez, Andre Iniesta or Cesc Fabregas at their disposal.
The left-footed wonder has proved time and again his worth for the Spanish giants, who have gone onto win numerous titles, after making Messi the focal point of their offense.
Barcelona president Sandro Rosell knows Messi, who scored over 70 goals last season, is invaluable and revealed the club are preparing a new contract, despite the 25-year-old having four years to run on his current deal.
Rosell admitted talks over a new contract had not started yet, but said it is his and the club's responsibility to secure Messi's future. "It finishes in 2016, but it would be irresponsible to not improve his contract," Rosell told Catalunya Radio. "You have to think about such things.
"Right now there is nothing scheduled, but this is a machine that is constantly in motion and things can change at any moment.
"The coaching staff think about next Sunday, we look further down the line and take the more distant future into consideration.
"Work has to start now on the contract that will take effect from 2016."
Messi underlined his importance to the team, by scoring two goals against Spartak Moscow in the Champions League to rescue all three points at the Nou Camp, after Barcelona were trailing 2-1.
The Argentine international also came off the bench in last weekend's game, to score another two goals against Getafe in a 4-2 victory.
While the future of Cristiano Ronaldo remains uncertain at Real Madrid, Messi has always spoken about spending his entire career at Barcelona, where he came up from the youth ranks, before exploding into the superstar that he is today.
Rosell refused to be drawn out on the problems surrounding Real with Ronaldo recently claiming he was "sad" at the club. The Portuguese, though, answered his critics splendidly with the winner against Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday.
"The day you become preoccupied by other teams' matters is the day you start to lose," Rosell added. "We need to remain a close group and work as such."
