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Lionel Messi will officially not be playing for Barcelona anymore. The 6-time Ballon d'Or winner made his debut for the senior Barcelona side in 2004 and spent 17 wonderful seasons with the club at the very top level.
Winner of an incredible 34 major trophies, Messi leaves the club with a rich legacy. A true legend of the game and Barcelona's greatest ever player, Messi enjoyed a long and fruitful association with the Catalan giants.
Although Messi only made his senior debut in 2004, the Argentine moved to Barcelona in early 2001 after impressing the Barcelona directors in a trial in December 2000.
Barcelona even paid for Lionel Messi's growth hormone treatment as the Argentine learned the ways of the club and the style of play in their famed La Masia academy. Messi enjoyed a rapid rise to senior football and made his debut for both Barcelona C and Barcelona B in the 2003-04 season before graduating to the main team in the 2004-05 season.
What followed was pure magic as Messi broke record after record at Barcelona, winning multiple La Liga titles and UEFA Champions League trophies. Lionel Messi has scored an incredible 672 goals in 775 games and is the club's record goalscorer.
Also read: Ballon d'Or 2021: Ranking the top 5 favourites - August 2021
Where will Lionel Messi play next season?
Lionel Messi's availability will have alerted all the top clubs in Europe but only a few clubs will be able to afford the wages of the 6-time Ballon d'Or winner.
Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City are both financially capable and could make a move for the legendary Argentine in the coming days. The prospect of seeing either Lionel Messi and Neymar reuniting or Pep Guardiola and Messi reuniting is certainly a tantalizing one. But wherever Lionel Messi plays next season, it will be strange to see him in a club jersey other than that of Barcelona.
After over 20 years in Barcelona, the man who entered La Masia as a shy boy leaves the club as its biggest legend.
Also read: Twitter explodes as Lionel Messi officially leaves Barcelona
