'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Lionel Messi's current contract with Barcelona expires in the summer but the way things have gone over the past few months, chances are that he will put pen to paper on a new deal for a multitude of reasons.
All hell broke loose at Barcelona last summer when Lionel Messi informed the club via a burofax that he intends to leave. However, a clause in Lionel Messi's contract priced potential suitors out of the race to sign him. The Argentine was thus forced to stay put at the club.
Lionel Messi is yet to extend his deal with Barcelona. However, things have been looking up for both the player and the club over the past few months. Last night's Copa Del Rey triumph only sweetened the atmosphere around the Camp Nou and Barcelona are still in with a shout in the La Liga title race as well.
On that note, let's take a look at five reasons why Lionel Messi will stay at Barcelona.
#5 Lionel Messi should be happy now that old problems are more or less gone
It's fair to say that we're all clear about just how poorly Barcelona was managed in the past decade. Josep Maria Bartomeu and co. nearly ran the club to the ground and have allegedly been up to all kinds of politically motivated activities that proved to be extremely counterproductive.
Bartomeu has been accused of running smear campaigns on Barcelona's former players and even Lionel Messi. The club looked clueless as to how to go about their business and this was evident in the manner in which Luis Suarez was shown the exit door in a callous manner despite all his contributions to the club.
Barcelona's recruitment team had done a horrendous job and bankrolled hundreds of millions in Euros on players who were not the right fit for the team. But all of that is changing now and Josep Maria Bartomeu and co. resigning and leaving office is one of the best things to have happened at the club in the recent past.
#4 Barcelona's results are improving on the pitch
Amid all their other struggles, Barcelona have also had to find a long-term manager who knows the club and has his own ideas about where to take the club to. Thankfully, they were able to rope in former player and club legend Ronald Koeman.
It took a while for the team to settle down under Ronald Koeman but that's only natural. Now they have hit their stride and are cruising along. Koeman won his first piece of silverware as Barcelona manager last night as the Catalans dispatched Athletic Bilbao 4-0 to lift the Copa Del Rey trophy.
Barcelona are also very much in the La Liga title race and have been playing some really good football of late. The fact that this looked almost unattainable last summer was one of the contributing factors in Messi deciding that he has had enough at Barcelona.
It has clearly changed now and there is a promising project happening at Barcelona and Lionel Messi seems happy to be at the forefront of it.
#3 Lionel Messi can captain the club and nurture players
Back when Lionel Messi was breaking onto Barcelona's first team scene, he had the good fortune of playing alongside some of the greatest players of the 21st century. Lionel Messi has been guided and mentored by some of the legends of the game like Xavi, Iniesta, Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry to name a few, and that has certainly had an impact on him.
With Barcelona renewing their focus on their youth academy and young players, there is an environment where someone like Messi can have a long-lasting impact. Barcelona also have a crop of extremely talented young players like Ansu Fati, Pedri, Moriba, Oscar Mingueza and Sergino Dest to name a few.
Lionel Messi can play a huge role in molding them into stars and that will be a great opportunity for him to complete the full circle at Barcelona.
See here: 5 players Lionel Messi took under his wing at Barcelona
#2 Lionel Messi can immortalize his legacy at Barcelona
In an era where much discussion has been held over the increase in player power and where loyalty and commitment have entirely different connotations, Lionel Messi has remained a one-club player similar to some of the greatest Barcelona players of all time.
Even if Lionel Messi were to depart, his legacy at Barcelona would in no way be tarnished. Perhaps no one has contributed so much to a club in the history of the game. However, Lionel Messi will know very well that he presently has a chance to immortalize his legacy at Barcelona.
If he chooses to stick on, Lionel Messi will become an embodiment of the Barcelona spirit and will make a great role model in whose footsteps, new generations of Barcelona players can follow.
#1 President Joan Laporta and Lionel Messi's good relationship with him
One of the main reasons why Lionel Messi wanted to leave Barcelona in the summer was the club's top brass headed by Josep Maria Bartomeu. The situation has changed immensely over the course of the season, with newly elected club president Joan Laporta a beloved presence at the club.
Laporta was president of Barcelona between 2003-2010 and oversaw an extremely successful time for the Catalans. During Laporta's last tenure as president, Barcelona set a record for the most number of trophies won in a 12-month period in 2009 when they won six trophies.
Joan Laporta has maintained a good relationship with Lionel Messi and has vowed to do all he can to try to make the Argentine stay at the club. Messi seems to be a fan of the president too and there is a good chance that he will decide to put pen to paper on a new deal now that most things are working out to his liking.
Also read: 5 players you didn’t know played with Lionel Messi
