Lionel Messi says goodbye to Barcelona but insists Paris Saint-Germain move not done yet
An emotional Lionel Messi says he did not want to leave Barcelona but that a move to Paris Saint-Germain is not confirmed.
Messi was in tears as he received a standing ovation in his final Barcelona press conference to announce the end of his 21 years with the club.
Barcelona confirmed the six-time Ballon dâOr winnerâs departure on Thursday night, the same day he returned to Catalonia following his post-Copa America holiday.
Messi had travelled to Barcelona expecting to agree on the details of the announcement of his new five-year deal, and he confirmed he offered to reduce his wages by 50 per cent.
âThis year, my family and I were convinced we were going to stay at home, thatâs what we all wanted more than anything,â said Messi.
âWeâd always made this our own, we were at home. We thought we would be staying here in Barcelona. But today, we have to say goodbye to all of this.â
Barcelona president Joan Laporta blamed Messiâs exit on the former regime at the club in addition to La Liga spending rules had thwarted any hopes of the Argentinian staying in Catalonia.
âI did everything possible and the club, Laporta, they couldnât do it because of La Liga,â said Messi.
He added: âIâm not ready for this. And honesty, with all the nonsense with the burofax, I was convinced of what I wanted to say.
âWe thought we would be staying in Barcelona. The time we have had here has been amazing.â
PSG offering two-year deal, Messi: âNothing is confirmedâ Sky Sports News reporter Gary Cotterill says Messi has spoken to Paris Saint-Germain boss Mauricio Pochettino over a move to the French club after leaving BarcelonaMessi has spoken directly with Paris Saint-Germain head coach Mauricio Pochettino as he moves closer to joining the French club after leaving Barcelona.
PSG are offering Messi a two-year deal worth £25m a year after tax with the option of a further year. The 34-year-old and his father Jorge are braced for the arrival of the offer this weekend.
Asked if a move to PSG will be his next move, Messi said: âThat is one possibility, to reach those heights.
âIâve got nothing confirmed with anybody. I had a lot of calls, a lot of interested clubs. At the moment, nothing is closed, but we are talking about a lot of things.â
Analysis: Questions asked of FFP complianceSky Sportsâ Kaveh Solhekol:
Lionel Messi moving to Paris will raise French footballâs profile around the world but serious questions will be asked about PSGâs ability to operate within financial fair play (FFP) rules.
French clubs have been hit extremely hard by the pandemic. Ligue 1 and 2 did not finish their seasons after they were suspended in March last year and the LFPâs â¬800m-a-year domestic broadcast deal with Mediapro collapsed four months into its first season.
Despite the problems in French football, PSG, backed by their Qatari owners, are confident they can balance their books by selling players and sign Messi without breaking FFP rules.
PSGâs wage bill of â¬414m in 2019/20 was more than three times that of the next richest club â" Lyonâs wage annual bill was â¬132m.
PSG have already signed Achraf Hakimi from Inter Milan this summer for â¬60m and they have given big contracts to three players who were free agents â" Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sergio Ramos and Georginio Wijnaldum.
They remain in talks with Kylian Mbappe about a contract extension â" his current deal runs out next summer.
PSG signing Messi would make it extremely difficult for them to be able to afford to sign Paul Pogba from Manchester United this summer.
Any deal for Messi would also be a huge boost for Qatar as it prepares to host the World Cup next year.
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