"We hope to find right conditions to continue his story” - Barcelona chief provides encouraging update on re-signing Lionel Messi

Barcelona confirm being in contact with Lionel Messi
Barcelona confirm being in contact with Lionel Messi

Barcelona’s vice president Rafa Yuste has confirmed that they are in talks with Lionel Messi’s camp to facilitate a return in the summer.

Lionel Messi bid a tearful goodbye to his boyhood club Barcelona in the summer of 2021, leaving Camp Nou as a free agent after they failed to renew his contract. Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) lapped him up soon after, signing him on a two-year deal with the option of a third. To activate the third year, both parties will need to provide consent.

Messi’s two-year contract is set to expire in June 2023 and he is yet to consent to an additional year of stay. With Messi’s PSG future in the air, Barcelona, for the first time, have confirmed that they have held talks with their record goalscorer over a possible return this summer.

Barcelona vice president Yuste, via Fabrizio Romano, has revealed:

“We have been in contact with Leo Messi’s camp. Leo knows how much we appreciate him and I’d love for him to come back here at Barcelona.
“I was involved in contract talks two years ago and still remember how hard was to let Leo Messi leave.”

He concluded by saying:

“For sure Leo Messi loves Barça and the city, so we hope to find the right conditions to continue his story.”

Lionel Messi’s return hinges on the Blaugrana’s performance in the summer transfer window. They need to reduce their wage bill to avoid sanctions and register new players. Several big-ticket players might have to make way to make the dream reunion a reality.


French journalist Daniel Riolo claims Lionel Messi does not care about PSG

RMC Sport journalist Daniel Riolo has not shied away from taking shots at Lionel Messi since his move to the French capital. He has called the Argentine out over his failure to step up in Champions League games, urging PSG to let him leave, time and time again.

In his latest diss, Riolo claimed that Lionel Messi neither cared about the club nor their fans, urging Les Parisiens not to extend his contract beyond June 2023. He said (via GOAL):

“[When will] The leaders will finally open their eyes that he doesn’t care about PSG?
“And the fans will understand that Messi doesn’t give a s*** and that the thing to do is to say goodbye, thank you, to the see you again?”

The Barcelona legend has not lived up to his sky-high billing since moving to the Parc des Princes. While his overall return of 29 goals and 32 assists in 66 games (across competitions) has been impressive, his Champions League performance has been underwhelming.

None of his nine goals and four assists in the Champions League (14 games) have come in the four knockout matches PSG have played since Messi's transfer.

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Edited by Sushan Chakraborty