Ronaldinho signs new lucrative Barca deal

BRAZILIAN star Ronaldinho has signed a lucrative new deal with Barcelona as the club aim to ward off bids from European rivals.

Chelsea had been linked with a world-record bid for the 24-year-old but the Spanish giants have reportedly upped his yearly salary from €3.8 million to €5m.

Ronaldinho's buy-out clause is also believed to have increased from €100m to €150m Real Madrid's €68m purchase of Zinedine Zidane is the current record. Barca said he signed the deal, which runs until 2008, last week.