REVEALED: Barcelona’s new Amazon series details team-mates’ stunned reaction to Lionel Messi’s tearful departure… with Jordi Alba ‘in shock for THREE DAYS’ while Sergio Busquets laments the Argentine star is not getting the exit he ‘deserved’.
- Barcelona released a new Amazon Prime documentary on Wednesday morning
- Clips in the series show the moment Lionel Messi was forced to leave the club
- Teammates Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets were “speechless” at the news.
- Club president Joan Laporta admitted it was a ‘sad’ occasion for the Catalan side
- Barcelona blamed “economic and structural obstacles” for Messi’s exit
Footage from Barcelona’s new Amazon Prime series have shown the reaction of team-mates after discovering Lionel Messi would leave the club in 2021.
Last summer, the Argentine forward was forced to leave the Camp Nou after his contract expired and he was unable to renew due to economic and structural obstacles.
It was a stunning moment when the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner left the club to join PSG and Barcelona’s new streak shows the shocked reaction of team-mates after learning the news.
Barcelona’s Amazon Prime series has revealed teammates’ reaction to Lionel Messi’s departure
Sergio Busquets claimed he was ‘speechless’ at the news of Messi leaving the club
Footage showed the Argentine superstar in tears during his farewell ceremony last summer
Barcelona’s new Amazon Prime series ‘A New Era’ sees the likes of Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and Ansu Fati react to the news of Messi’s departure.
Spain full-back Alba said: “I was at home with my family. I saw a press release and couldn’t believe it. I was in shock for three days.
“No one in the dressing room could believe it. It was a very difficult moment for the players. I knew Leo wanted to stay, 100 percent.
“It was a hard blow. He was our leader. The best player in the world. The one that made us all much better. And we shared a lot of moments off the field.’
Messi spent 21 years with the Catalan side, scoring 672 goals in 778 games and clinching 10 La Liga titles before his forced exit last year.
Footage showed a close-up of the Argentine superstar during his teary-eyed farewell in 2021
Alba (right) and Messi spent the better part of a decade playing together at Barcelona
Sergio Busquets, who has been a heir to tika-taka football shown at Barcelona over the years, claimed he was left “speechless” by the news.
“It was shocking. I could not believe it. I saw the news and was speechless. I didn’t expect it because of its importance and because of the years Leo was on the team and what he meant to the players on the field,” said Busquets.
“I wanted Leo to say goodbye the way he deserved and the way he wanted it.”
That was not the case for Messi, who bade farewell to the club on August 8, 2021 with only tears in his eyes – as opposed to saying goodbye on the pitch.
Sergio Busquets (L) insists Messi should have gotten the ‘deserved’ farewell from Barcelona
Youngster Ansu Fati revealed the method Messi used to tell his teammates he was leaving
Elsewhere in the episode, young star Ansu Fati – who inherited the No10 shirt following Messi’s departure – revealed that Messi had texted a group of his team-mates to update them on the news.
“He wrote a message to the group saying goodbye. That’s when we found out. To be honest it was hard. Yes,’ said Fati.
Barcelona president Juan Laporta also insisted the news was “sad” but ultimately little could be done to resolve the situation.
“Sometimes I think about the reasons why he couldn’t stay and yes, it’s sad,” said the Spaniard.
Laporta claimed this week that he would ‘love it very much’ if Messi returned to the Catalan club – despite reports he will extend his current contract with PSG.
Barcelona president Juan Laporta said the incident was a very “sad” time for the club
It was widely expected that Lionel Messi would extend his 21-year tenure at Barcelona and stay at the Nou-Camp but was forced to leave the Spanish giants in 2021.
He had become a free agent with Barca after his original contract expired but was in line for a new long-term deal, albeit on lower salary terms.
However, the club claimed LaLiga’s ‘economic obstacles’ prevented them from offering Messi a lucrative new contract, which led to the player reportedly reversing his decision to re-sign.
The superstar then quickly moved to French giants PSG, where he played under compatriot Mauricio Pochettino, who was later sacked.
