Last Updated: March 10, 2023, 12:07 IST
Lionel Messi with fans at Barcelona (Twitter)
Lionel Messi left Barcelona in 2021 after the club officials and the footballer failed to fulfil a new contract agreement
Lionel Messi’s Champions League campaign came to an end this season after Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) were downed by Bayern Munich in the round-of-16 earlier this week. Following the defeat, talks of Messi’s contract renewal at PSG once again became a major talking point. The Argentine’s current contract with PSG will expire in the summer and there is an option of extending the deal by one more year if both sides reach an agreement. However, Messi’s reluctance to sign a new deal has generated plenty of speculation about his next destination. A return to his childhood club Barcelona is in the offing and Messi, quite unsurprisingly, has been linked with the Catalan giants in recent times. However, some key factors have to be analysed in order to complete this dramatic move.
It is being learnt that Barcelona will not be allowed to sign new players in the summer. However, Barca president Joan Laporta believes that the Catalan giants will not face any trouble in landing new faces. Barcelona have already shelled out a huge amount to rope in some big names like- Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Jules Kounde. In a situation like this, Barcelona will have to take care of the salary cap if they wish to sign Lionel Messi. Barcelona may very well have to release some footballers as well in order to afford the Argentine’s wage. Finding new sponsors can also be another fruitful option to solve the financial crisis. Barcelona had reportedly signed a €280m deal with Spotify in 2022. The Blaugranas are currently without a sleeve sponsor. Barcelona team management can certainly explore some suitable options in this area to generate revenue.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta recently revealed that he had held talks with Lionel Messi’s father Jorge Messi. Laporta had also opened up on the topic of his discussion with Jorge. “We (he and Jorge Messi) have seen each other. I congratulated him for Argentina’s World Cup victory. We are talking about a tribute match for Leo, who has extraordinary affection for Barca. He’s at PSG right now, so I don’t want to speak about whether or not he could return. Leo’s thing isn’t about money, we’re talking about a tribute,” Laporta was quoted as saying by Mundo Deportivo.
Lionel Messi left Barcelona in 2021 after the club officials failed to fulfil a new contract agreement with the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner. Messi had joined Euroean giants PSG on a two-year deal.
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