Lionel Messi warming up for the final French league game against PSG last Saturday. ALAIN JOCARD (AFP)
Leo Messi will take a middle ground when his contract with PSG ends on June 30 and he becomes a free agent: he will bet on Inter Miami’s family option before money from Saudi Arabia or love in the colors of Barcelona. Although the desire of the 10 was to return to Barça, the Barça club’s critical economic situation prevents the formulation of a contract that meets the league’s requirements, the same problem that has already led to his departure in 2021.
The player’s schedule didn’t match the company’s: Messi wanted an immediate response and Barcelona asked for time to adjust his salary scale and comply with the feasibility plan signed with the league. Both the footballer and the institution practically gave up after the player had already told Barcelona that he would not be returning, despite interest from president Joan Laporta and especially coach Xavi Hernández.
There has been excitement in the Barcelona dressing room for the past few hours. “What’s going on with Leo?” asked one of the participants of Barca’s expedition to Japan, where the team played a friendly against Iniestas Vissel Kobe (0-2). There were others watching Twitch. There were also the most classic, if you will, who eagerly followed the information on Twitter. The expectations of the Barcelona players collapsed this Wednesday afternoon. As confirmed by Barca company sources, Messi will not return to Barca and will certainly continue his career in the United States, as revealed by journalist Miguel Rico.
The Argentina captain thus rejected Arabia’s tempting offer – 400 million per season – and accepted Inter’s offer, which according to The Athletic includes a percentage of revenue from the MLS pass, the broadcasting package of televised matches – the American League signed a 10-season deal with Apple in exchange for $2,500m – as well as a share of profits from Adidas, which sponsors both MLS and the Argentines. In addition, according to the US portal, there is always the possibility of buying a team when he resigns, as was agreed with David Beckham at the time. Then the Argentine’s American dream begins. A dream that raced for Messi. His wish was to continue his career in Europe.
Ahead of the World Cup in Qatar, the Rosario man had agreed in principle to extend his contract with PSG for another season. However, everything cooled down in February, after the first meeting between Jorge Messi, the player’s agent and father, and Luis Campos, sporting director of the Paris team. The manager of the French team did not know how to answer Messi’s question: “What is the sport project?” At that moment, Barcelona, and especially Xavi, appeared. At the time, Laporta had only contacted Jorge on a small scale: a half-hour meeting at a hotel where, according to both parties, only a possible honor was discussed. And nothing more. Messi had high hopes for his Barcelona return, according to those who know him. It turns out that in the Barcelona unit, Laporta was the only one happy to see the 10’s return.
“First we have To all the players that we have To,” said the sports department at the time. Other sports management sources, even more skeptical about Messi’s return, said: “How can you start talking about a signing like Leo’s, with all the moves that entail, both fair play and leaving the club ? Players in April?” This should have started much earlier. Time passed and Messi still didn’t receive a proposal from the club. Then, in mid-May, the Rosario man began to distance himself emotionally from Barcelona. “If they couldn’t register him in 2021, when there were supposedly no problems with LaLiga, how are they supposed to do it now that there’s an open dispute?” asked a Barcelona dressing room veteran.
Media pressure from Xavi and dressing room concerns over the number of exits needed to open the door for him distanced Messi from Barcelona. “We are waiting for Xavi to speak to us to see if we need to search for life. But he didn’t do it,” assures one of the players who plans to leave Barça next year. “Leo is mentally bad and tired,” judged Jorge Messi in his last public appearance. The player’s father had attempted a last-ditch approach to Laporta. I didn’t work it out. According to Barcelona sources, the club had made an offer for the player. A maxim that does not agree with the version from the footballer’s environment: “It was not a formal proposal.” The meeting between the president and the players’ agent lasted barely half an hour. There was no turning back. Messi’s future would definitely move away from the Camp Nou.
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