Bartomeu confirms Messi can leave 'whenever he wants' but believes the captain will continue.
'Messi can leave whenever he wants. He has gained freedom over his future.' says Bartomeu.
'But I have no doubt that he will continue. Xavi, Iniesta and Puyol had this contract as well.'
'Messi is a huge culé!'
Bartomeu insisted that Barcelona do everything possible to make sure that Messi plays alongside the best at the Camp Nou.
"Each year we do everything and more to try to make our members happy," Bartomeu said.
"Each year we've built a better squad than the one before, although it's also true that we've had bad matches like against Roma or Liverpool.
"Moving to Barcelona and competing with people like [Sergio] Busquets, [Luis] Suarez or Messi is very difficult because they're the best.
"They've won eight of the last 11 LaLiga Santander titles, they've won UEFA Super Cups, Cops del Rey.
"Each year we do everything and more to be competitive."